Breaking the Cycle
by DySolo
Summary: Follows Elle's intimate relationships during her time at and after the BAU. Elle/Morgan with splashes of Elle/Reid. First of the Deal Breaker Series.
1. Extreme Aggressor

**Title** - Breaking the Cycle  
>First in the <strong>Deal Breaker Series<strong>  
>Main <strong>Pairings<strong> of this story - Reid/Elle and Elle/Morgan  
><strong>Summary:<strong> Follows the intimate relationships of Elle Greenaway as she begins life at and after the BAU.  
><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

This is the third version of this story. The first version is a series of one shots still posted on my story list. The second version was the original chapter posted here, which I have re-posted this over and will continue to do for the first 20 chapters of this story. If you would like the second version of this story, please message me and I will give you that.

This story will be the first of multiple stories that will run parallel of each other once we get to that episode. One Small Step (Reid/Lila) will start once this story gets to the episode Somebody's Watching. Emily's story will start when she joins the team. JJ/Will's will start during Jones. and Kevin/Garcia's will start during the Penelope/Lucky arch.

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><p><strong>Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle<strong>

"You called in the BAU?" A woman asks, pushing into the Supervisory Special Agent Granger's office. The man sits back into his seat, looking at the woman in surprise.

"Agent Greenaway." The man nods at her. "You know you could knock." He says with a bit of a smile.

Greenaway gives a nod and stays quiet before she speaks again, unable to resist. "I want on the task force. I've been paying close attention to Seattle Stranger case for weeks now. I really-"

"-want on the BAU team, yes I know, Elle. I remember you asking about a transfer request."

"This offender is an anger-excitation rapist." She starts, ignoring his statement, "He needs to continue to relieve these crimes. I could be an asset. My skills in sex crimes are useful and I've been studying Psychology at WSU. I-" She pauses when he laughs, holding up his hand. She hates when he laughs at her, like she's a child. It annoys her, but she bites her tongue. He's still her boss.

"We've already set up a team to work with the BAU team, Greenaway. Your name is on the list."

She stares at him. "Really, sir?"

He laughs. "Now you call me sir. The BAU will arrive soon, I want you and the rest of the members that will be working with them ready. Jefferson will fill you in."

She nods and begins to leave the office. She turns at the door.

"Thank you." She says before she moves back to her desk, grabbing the files from Jefferson before she sits down, a smirk on her face. This was finally her chance to become a member of the prestigious BAU team. Ever since she had witnessed Jason Gideon's lecture on profiling, she had been intrigued. The BAU was the biggest and the baddest of the FBI and she needed that open spot on the team.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

She doesn't get to speak to any of the team members until the profile is given and they have a suspect in mind: Richard Slessman. She and the task force set up the plan and fortunately, it goes smoothly. It's after they have the man in custody that she first meets the team. Jason Gideon seems older than she remembers, but he asks her opinion - which is a great honor. Hotchner is stoic and calm. A natural leader which makes her wonder who was really running the show now that Gideon was back. She tries to speak to the nerdy young genius, Dr. Reid, but he walks away from her. He doesn't even look her in the eye during their first introduction and later, she'll learn he can't talk to her unless it's about the case Even then, he seems stressed at the fact he's talking to a woman. She doesn't doubt his skill though at all. She knows all about his intelligence and his astounding career. The next person she meets is Derek Morgan and her first impression of him is that he's sexy, but arrogant and a smart ass. Throughout the case, They exchange some banter and she realizes that he's not as bad as his first impression made him appear. Still, she's wary of the man.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle visits a local bar after the case is over, rewarding herself with a drink when she sees Dr Reid and Morgan enter the bar. Reid looks so uncomfortable but smiles when he sees her. She guesses she's the most familiar choice and the most comfortable to him in this situation. Maybe he'll be more at ease. She hopes, at least. She's curious and would love to pick the man's brain. She waves him over and he slinks away from Morgan who is canvassing the bar for a girl to hit on, she assumes.

"Hey Doc." She says, smiling at him.

"Hello. " He nods, before he sits next to her. He fidgets and she smiles. She wonders what the man's issue is, but doesn't bother her. A moment passes before he clears his throat. "You did very well on the case. I heard Gideon tell Hotch that you'd be a good asset on the team." He doesn't look at her, but it's a start, an actual conversation.

"Well that's-" She starts, but Morgan makes his way over to them, wrapping his arm around Reid's shoulder, which immediately makes the genius cringe.

"Hey man. You're supposed to help a brother out!" He teases before looking over at Elle. He gives her a megawatt smile. "Why, hello, Greenaway."

She sees Reid shrug the man's arm off his shoulder before she glances back at Morgan.

"Derek."

He cocks an eyebrow at his given name, but doesn't say anything about it. "Good work out there. Guess you didn't have to show a little leg at all." he teases and she glares while Reid looks between them confused.

"You really want me to kick your ass, don't you?" She asks, leaning against the bar as she looks at him, unimpressed.

"Seeing how that Morgan has a black belt in Judo and is at least 60 pounds heavier than you, I suspect your ability to beat him in hand to hand combat would be exponentially lower." Reid says and Morgan laughs.

"What he said."

"It only takes a good hard kick to the groin to get a man of any size to his knees."

Both men look uncomfortable and she laughs before finishing her drink. She stands, ruffles Reid's hair after she stands.

"Have a good flight, boys." She says.

Derek whistles as she walks towards the door. "Man, she's feisty. I like her."

"She keeps touching me. I don't understand why she feels the need to touch me. I barely know her." She hears Reid whine in response before Derek laughs as she exits the bar.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle takes a long drag of her cigarette as she leans against the SVU. She had volunteered to drive the agents to their jet. She figured that she could talk with Hotchner and Gideon more about the job on the team. She knew that she had done enough to gain their attention, but there was always more one could to do cement her as a good candidate. She flicks the cigarette the ground before she mashes it to the cement with her boot. She really needed to quit, but not today.

"Coming to tell us goodbye, Agent Greenaway?" Derek asks as he makes his way up to the car. She looks up at him.

"I'm here to drive you to the jet." She says, not playing his games.

"Trying to get in with the bosses, again? A little sweet talk, this time."

She looks at him before she smirks. His smile is infectious and she finds herself retorting.

"Oh, I think I've got a lot more than words on my side." She says and winks. She's not one to back down from a challenge. She looks behind him and smiles.

"Hey Dr. Reid." She says, causing the man to look down at his shoes immediately. She shakes her head before looking at Derek, who's doing the same. They share a knowing look before she moves to get into the car, seeing Gideon and Hotch making their way to the car.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

"Greenaway." Granger calls out and Elle jumps up, making her way to her desk.

"Your transfer papers to the BAU, you've sent them in already, right?"

"Yes, sir. Two weeks ago. Before the team arrived. You-"

"Right. I was just making sure. Agent Gideon wanted to make sure."

"Agent Gideon? He's going to accept my transfer?"

"Agent Hotchner seems to have taken over the Unit Chief spot now, but yes, it seems like they're going to accept it. Starting in the first of October."

Elle nods, trying to contain her excitement. "Awesome!"

She clears her throat. "I mean, that's great. Thank you…sir."

He laughs. "Indeed. Now go back and finish your paperwork. I need the Slessman file as soon as possible."

"Right! Great. Thank you."

She leaves the office and grins. She was going to a member of the BAU.


	2. Compulsion

**Author's Notes:**

**As of 5/27:  
><strong>

This is the third version of this story. The first version is a series of one shots still posted on my story list. The second version was the original chapter posted here, which I have re-posted this over and will continue to do for the first 20 chapters of this story. If you would like the second version of this story, please message me and I will give you that.

* * *

><p>Elle sets down her go-bag after arriving back at home after the first case. Boxes litter the whole house and she makes a sour face at all the work she still has left to do. She makes her way into the kitchen, setting the keys on the counter as she dodges boxes. She opens the fridge to see nothing but Chinese take-out from the day before the case. She takes it out and sniffs it. It's no good. She sighs, tossing it before grabbing her keys and leaving the unpacked house.<p>

She arrives back at the BAU and smirks when she sees Reid at his desk, playing chess with himself again. She sits on the edge of her desk. "Thinking outside of the box?"

He raises his head and gives her tight-lipped smile. She fights the urge to reach out and ruffle his hair again. She's learned that Dr. Reid hates being touched. She wondered if it was a genius thing or just one of the kid's quirks. She watches as he plays before she gets bored and makes her way back to her desk.

"I thought I told you to go home, Spence." JJ says, dropping files on his desk.

She watches as Reid looks up again, this time with a bit of a blush. She smirks, the kid had a crush. She watches as he stumbles and JJ ruffles his hair - and this time he doesn't seem as annoyed, like he does when she does it. He definitely had a crush. JJ looks at Elle as she sets files on her desk, giving her a polite smile.  
>"I heard that you figured out the stutter. Impressive. Not even Spence figured it out."<p>

Reid looks up again and she sees the offended look on his face and she laughs. "It was just luck."

JJ drops the files on Morgan's desk before she turns back towards her. "Reid doesn't believe in luck."

"It's been proven that luck and coincidence don't exist. The Law of Large Numbers, also known as Bernoulli's Theorem, because It was first proven by Jacob Bernoulli, although in all actuality, it was first stated by Gerolamo Cardano, but he had no proof so the credit -"

"-Spence." JJ interrupts and Reid purses his lips.

"When performing the same act a large amount of times, you will end up with the expected value. In this case, people continuing to ask, it's expected that someone would eventually get the expected value, which in this case is the answer." He summarizes it quickly before looking back at his chess board. Elle looks between Reid and JJ amused.

"What are you still doing here?" She asks the blonde, who shrugs.

"Looking for the next case for you guys to go on."

"Do we go on a case every week?" Elle asks, realizing that she really doesn't know all that much about the BAU, other than the lectures she's heard and the articles she's read.

JJ shakes her head. "Mostly, you'll write up preliminary profiles for most of the cases we get unless it feels necessary for us to go to the area. We get so many requests for help that it would be impossible to go on the cases, and a lot are cases that don't need us there, but just a little help." She pats the files on the desk. "Which leaves you with all this."

"and you decide that?" Elle asks, impressed. She sees Reid look up at look at JJ with what seems like a little worry. JJ shrugs, trying to appear nonchalant, but Elle notices the stress in her face. Elle realizes that JJ's job is a lot harder than she thought. "Shit, sounds like you need a drink worse than I do."

JJ laughs and Elle grins as Reid makes a disgusted face. She had already assumed that Reid wasn't a drinker. He was too much of a nerd for something like that. She looks back at JJ.

"I'm supposed to meet Garcia in a few. You should come with." JJ says and Elle nods.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle follows JJ into the bar. She spots a voluptuous blonde watching Derek Morgan like a hawk and he dances on the floor.

"Garcia?" She asks JJ who nods, moving to the blonde.

"God, Jayje. Look at him move. My delicious milk chocolate."

Elle's eyebrows raise at the description of Morgan. JJ just shakes her head.

"You'll get used to it." She says, leaning in to her. "They do it all the time."

"Are they dating?"

JJ snorts. "Morgan doesn't 'date'."

Elle nods and orders a drink. She looks back at the man dancing on the floor. He's surrounded by beautiful woman. She has already learned that Morgan was a flirt - she had learned that the first day she had met him. It made since that he was a bachelor, enjoying the single life. She turns back to the women as their drinks come. She sips the vodka tonic before she hears Morgan.

"Hey, pretty ladies."

Elle looks over her shoulder to see the man, grinning.

"Hey sexy." Garcia purrs back and Elle shakes her head, pulling out a cigarette, which gets his attention back. She lights it before he speaks.

"You smoke?"

She breathes out before she answers. "Occasionally."

"You know they're getting closer to passing a smoking ban in DC, right? No smoking indoors anywhere." Garcia says and Elle frowns.

"It's a bar."

"Doesn't matter." Morgan says, looking at her.

"Well then I guess I'll have to go outside then." She blows the smoke in his face before snubbing it out, not even half way through.

"Attractive." He says before sipping his drink.

"You mean you don't like a woman sticking a phallic-shaped item in her mouth and sucking isn't attractive? I'm shocked, Derek."

He chuckles, setting back his glass. When he doesn't retort right back, she shakes her head.

"I'm surprised someone with your game didn't make a comment out of that." She teases.

"I don't need game with these abs." He raises his shirt and her eyes fall to his muscles. He has a point, he's built like a god. Still, she won't give him the satisfaction of admitting it, like Garcia, who is practically drooling at the sight.

"Eh. Not bad." She says, turning back to her drink and sipping.

"Not bad? Not bad!"

She turns to him and laughs. "What? Did you think I was going to drop to my knees and beg you to take me home because you have a six pack? You aren't the first man I've seen who has ab muscles, Derek."

He smirks at her and when she removes her jacket, she sees his eyes fall. She smirks right back. "I'm going to get another drink."

She runs her hand over his chest as she gets up and moves to the bar. JJ follows.

"What was that?" She asks and Elle looks at her.

"You and Morgan."

"I can't flirt?"

JJ shakes her head, amused. "Garcia was sending you daggers."

Elle just laughs.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle moves into the office the next morning. She spots Garcia and Morgan at his desk. Garcia looks up and frowns, turning attention back to the man. She smirks, remembering JJ's comment, she moves into the break room. Reid's making a cup of coffee. She watches him for a moment before laughing. "Do you have any coffee with your sugar?"

He flushes, tucking his chin into his chest as he stirs. "I like it this way."

"Don't like the bitterness?" She asks, getting herself a cup.

"I started drinking coffee when I was 10 years old. It's become habit."

She stares at him. "Ten?"

"When I started high school." He explains and she merely blinks.

"You started high school at ten? Your parents were okay with that? You must have been bullied."

She watches as Spencer freezes. She must have hit a nerve. She clears her throat. "Sorry."

"No." He shakes his head. "It's uh, a good observation." He stirs his drink before picking it up and moving to the bullpen.

"Reid." She turns and touches his arm. He pauses and looking at her with a tight-lipped, tense smile. "I didn't mean to bring any bad memories up." She tells him, fingers running over his arm. He pulls back immediately, moving back to the bullpen. She watches him for a moment before grabbing her own cup and following. With the comment on the case and now this, she wondered if had ruined her chance on getting Reid to like her.

She looks at Morgan who is looking at Reid, curiously before he looks back at Elle. "What did you do?"

Her jaw drops. "I didn't do anything!"

He doesn't look convinced and she rolls her eyes. "Bite me, man."

He grins. "Maybe just a nibble."

Elle and Reid both look over at him and he winks before turning his attention back to his files.


	3. Won't Get Fooled Again

Author's Note: if you have read "One of the Other", the oneshot that was apart of the original Deal Breaker story, this is it's revamped chapter of that piece, but this story seems to be mostly in Elle's perspective and I couldn't break away from that to just bombard you with all of Morgan's emotions. They will come out in this story as Elle learns about them. Although, his emotions are pretty important to this chapter. So, if you would like to know what I thought was going through his head in this chapter, you can go read that piece too. It's not necessary, though, so whatever you decide, it's up to you! Enjoy the chapter!

(And for those who have read the first version of these stories, can you send me a review, telling me which one you like more? Just to see. Thank you, my lovelies!)

* * *

><p>She was surprised when Derek stayed at the BAU during the next case, but it doesn't surprise her. She knows that the man was on the Bale case and that bombs must be a tough thing to deal with so soon after. When the case ends, she knows that Gideon feels a bit of redemption, being able to outsmart Bale this time, and she wonders if Morgan will feel the same. She heads up to the BAU to find that he's already left. Garcia notices her pause at the man's desk as the tech makes her way out of the office.<p>

"Lookin' for Derek?" She asks and Elle swears she sees a smirk on her lips.

"Nah." Elle shrugs it off, making her way to her desk. "Just finishing up some paperwork."

"Oh, really. Then you won't want to know that he left an hour ago to head to the bar."

"Nope. Bye, Garcia."

"See you later." She singsongs as she walks out of the bullpen.

Elle sits at her desk, pulling out her files. She briefly looks over them before looking over her shoulder. She sighs and grabs her bag, leaving the files on her desk.

The bar isn't far and doesn't take her long to get spots Derek at the bar, beer in front of him, playing with a straw. He looks like he's had a few already. She sits next to him, smirk on her lips.

"First step is admitting you have a problem." She says and he turns to look at her, not amused. She a shot of tequila before looking back at him. She knows that he's taken the case badly and the only way she knows how to deal with it is to drink it away.

"Want one or do you think you've had enough?" It's a challenge and he raises an eyebrow.

"You think you can keep up with me?" He asks.

She laughs. "Baby, I was raised by Jose Cuervo."

"Make it two." Derek calls out to the bartender before looking back at her.

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Three

After 4 shots, Elle's feeling the effects of the tequila and leans against him to keep steady. She smirks at him, fingers clutching at his shirt.

"You stayed home. Scared of a bomb, baby?"

"I'm not scared of anything." His words of slightly slurred and she laughs.

"Liar, liar." She singsongs. "You're scared of bombs and you're scared of me."

He raises his eyebrows, unimpressed. "Of you. You're drunker than you think, Elle."

She laughs again. "Yes, you are. You won't take me."

He stares at her before kissing her hard on the mouth. Elle's fingers clutch at his shirt even more, keeping him close.

"I'm not scared of anything." he growls against her lips.

"Mmh, prove it. Let's get out of here." She kisses him again.

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Three.

She gasps as he presses her against the door, mouth on her neck. She digs her fingers into his skin, alcohol flowing through their systems. His hands move up her sides, removing her shirt with ease before his mouth moves over her throat down her chest.

"Morgan." She moans and it causes him to pause. She feels him tense a little and he pulls back somewhat, giving her access to the front of him. She doesn't look back up at him yet, eyes stuck on how his shirt clings to his chest.

"C'mon, _papi. _Don't be scared." She teases, bringing back the game from earlier. It had gotten him to react before. Her hands move over his chest, his muscles flexing against the touch.

"We can't do this." She hears him say, but she doesn't register it completely. He doesn't sound like he means it. She wonders if he's into that type of thing. No means yes. Her hands continue to move down his chest to his stomach, moving under his shirt, testing him. He'll stop her if he really wants to, she knows. She's played that game before. She hums in appreciation, he's built. His fingers run over the hard muscle, moving downward. She raise her eyes up to his face, seeing his eyes closed. He doesn't seem like she wants him to stop at all. She undoes the button of his pants, eyes moving back to her hands. His hips move up, wanting the contact and she smirks. He definitely wants more. He's a tease, she thinks to herself before beginning to run her fingers down his boxer briefs. His fingers wrap around her wrist before she can reach her target.

"Elle." He says and she raises her eyes to him. "I can't do this." His voice has changed, it's thick with emotion. She frowns, studying him for a moment. He looks hurt…scared?

She leans back against the wall, unsure of how to react at first. She had been in sex crimes long enough to identify a victim by their actions and Derek Morgan was portraying some high alerts at the moment. She reaches out to touch him and he backs away, quickly. He watches him grab her shirt from the floor and hand it back to her without looking at her.

"I'm sorry." he says. "but… we're… We're team mates."

She nods, even though he can't see her, before putting her shirt back on. "Of course."

"We're supposed to be close." He says before he turns back to look at her. "You understand, right?"

She can't help it. The words escape her before she can bite them back. "I think we'd be a lot closer after this, don't you think?"

He looks annoyed for a second and she can't tell if he's annoyed with her or himself. He sits down on the couch and she follows him.

"You don't think we can still be close if you fuck me?"

He sees his jaw clench at the curse, but he remains mute. She gets it, she does. The inability to combine sex and love after sexual trauma is common. She's seen it before. She's seen it a lot.

"I'm sorry." He repeats his earlier words and she nods. She can see the frustration in him, angry at himself, angry at the situation.

"It's not a big deal." She tries. "Too much alcohol."

He nods and she realizes her words don't help.

"I'm sorry." He says again and she feels that he means it. She wonders what happened to him. He's too strong to take advantage of without the help of something. Had someone drugged him? Had it happened before he had the ability to protect himself. It made sense, why he bulked up, why he couldn't separate love and sex. If it happened before he was old enough to understand what sex really was, then how could he understand that it was something good. She licks her lips, the tension in the room building.

"I… I guess, I should get going then."

He doesn't look up as she stands up.

"I'll see you at work." She says, softly, wondering if she should touch him as she walks out. She decides against it.

"Elle." He calls out as she reaches the door. She turns to him.

"Are you… I can call you a cab or…"

She shakes her head. "I'll be fine. Thanks, Derek."

He nods, slowly. Once outside, Elle breathes out. She had never guessed the night would end like this.


	4. In Plain Sight

Author's Note: So I'm reposting this, because yesterday was weird. Sorry for any confusion.

* * *

><p>Elle and Morgan don't talk about their incident. She already knows why he did it and he's too proud or embarrassed to bring it up. Still, they keep their distance each other until the next case comes up and even then, Elle spends most of her time with Reid, who shocks her a little, but opening up to her. While waiting for information, she's asked by the man the reason he can't get a date. She plays it off, but it sticks with her. The man who couldn't even look at her a month ago was now talking to her about his lack of social life. They solve the case and she smirks when she sees the man ask JJ out. She's proud of him, but worried too. If he was so awkward with her, she could only imagine how he'd be on a date. The next day she sets her plan into motion, walking towards the genius. Elle sits on edge of his desk and he straightens, immediately.<p>

"Can I help you?" He asks.

"You sure can." She grins.

He raises his eyebrows, silently asking her how.

"Take me out tonight."

That gets Derek's attention. He looks over at the two, curiously.

"E-excuse me?"

She looks up at JJ's office. "We all saw you ask JJ to the game."

He blushes. "Gideon gave me the tickets, I was just…"

She shakes her head. "Uh, uh, uh. It's obvious that you wanted to. I think we both know you have a crush on a certain blonde."

His face flushes deeper. "I do not!" He squeaks, looking up at JJ's office, afraid she might have heard the woman. "I do not like her." He says, hushed.

Elle doesn't look convinced. "Alright, but practices perfect, right? So what's another date going to hurt?" She raises an eyebrow, leaning back on his desk, pushing her chest out for effect. His eyes fall a little before they shift away from her. She knows she's hooked him.

"I… if I say yes, will you get off my desk?" He says, keeping his face turned away from her.

She laughs. "Sure."

She slides off his desk. "Pick me up tonight at seven."

Reid watches her, confused, as she moves to get a cup of coffee. Derek looks at him.

"What was that about?" He asks.

"I have no idea." He says, eyes still focusing on the break room.

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Four

She opens the door to see Spencer in his regular attire, standing at her door. She watches him take her in before he breathes in.

"You look… great."

She smirks. "You look the same. You're supposed to dress up for a date. Look nice."

He frowns, looking down at himself. "I look nice."

She chuckles and undoes his tie. "We're going to a dinner and a movie, you don't wear a tie to a movie. Do you own a pair of jeans?"

He watches her stuff his tie into her bag. "Yeah, why?"

"Wear them to the game. It's casual, if you show up looking like a professor, you're going to look out of place."

He nods, watching her as she locks up. "I picked a movie, but you can where we go eat, alright? I just didn't want to get stuck watching a documentary or something."

"Documentaries are actually very interesting if you pick the right subject. Last night, I watched one about Adolf Hilter. Did you know that he was fascinated with circuses. He -" He pauses, seeing her look. He clears his throat. "I'm just saying that you should give them a," He looks down as she locks arms with him. "A chance." He finishes.

"Maybe next time." She says as they walk towards the theatre. It's not far and she knows that Spencer just takes the Metro instead of driving.

"There's going to be a next time?" He asks, curiously, before looking down, embarrassed at the tone in his voice.

"Maybe if you play your cards right." She winks.

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Four

She pauses at her door. "You've surprised me, Dr. Reid." She says, turning towards him.

"How so?"

"For someone who doesn't date very often, you sure know how to make a girl feel wanted. I'd say this was one of the best dates, fake or not, that I've been on in a while."

He smiles to himself, looking at his shoes. "Thank you."

"You're going to be fine with JJ. Just don't be so nervous. You're a great guy." She touches his arm and he looks at her, embarrassed smile still on his lips.

"Well, I should be going then. I'm glad you had a good night." He says and starts to leave.

"Whoa. You forgot the final step! If you have a good date, you might just get a good night kiss."

He looks back at her. "O-oh?" He clears his throat. "But this-this wasn't a real date anyways, so-"

"So you and JJ are going to have a real date and if you get here and flake, it could make her feel bad, so…" She raises her eyebrows in waiting and he fidgets.

"You want me to kiss you?" He asks before rubbing his neck.

She chuckles. "Am I that bad that you don't want to kiss me?"

"No! No, you're.. I mean, you're beautiful and I had fun tonight, but…I mean, we're just… I…"

She tugs him close by his tie and kisses him. "See, not that bad, right?"

He frowns, looking at her before leaning again slowly. She meets him some of the way and this time, he kisses her slow, sensual. He pulls back, enough to put some space between them, but not enough that she couldn't lean in just a little more and kiss him again. "Like that?" He asks, softly. She raises her eyes to his before she pulls back completely, clearing her throat.

"Yeah-yeah… just like that."

He watches her for a second, raising an eyebrow. "Are you okay?"

She laughs, realizing she's blushing. "Of course."

He nods. "Okay, then. Good night."

She leans against the doorframe. "Good night, Dr. Reid."

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Four

She opens the door, cocking an eyebrow when she sees Derek. "Hey."

"Hey." He shoves his hands into his pockets as she stares at him.

"What can I help you with?"

"I thought we could talk."

She nods, stepping to the side so he could come in.

He walks in and stands in the middle of the room. "I was, It was inappropriate of me to take advantage of you in an intoxicated state and I apologize if it's been….strange."

She leans against the wall. "It's not strange, Derek. It's perfectly normal for someone with your…history to…."

"My history? What are you talking about?"

She straightens. "Well…I'm just saying that someone who went through what you-"

He tenses. "I didn't go through anything. We were drunk and we got ourselves in a bad situation that I stopped because I didn't want to take even more advantage that I already had. That's all that happened."

She nods. "Right. That's all that happened." She can hear the sarcasm in her voice, so she knows he does.

He glares. "It is." His words are clipped and she can see shame mixed with anger in his eyes.

"It is." she agrees. "Is that all you came to talk about or would you like to hear about Spencer and my date."

"You're calling him Spencer now?" he asks and she swears she hears a hint of annoyance still. She wonders if its from their previous topic or the fact she called Reid by his given name.

She shrugs. "Just trying it out. Jealous?" She can't help it. If he's going to be an ass, she'll be a bitch.

He rolls his eyes. "Good night, Elle."

"Good night, Papi." She says, seeing his back muscles tense at the term of endearment before he walks through the door.


	5. Broken Mirror & LDSK

Author's Note: This chapter is longer than the normal ones, but it mentions two episodes. To those who read the first version of this will notice I changed the bath scene to make it more realistic. I think it works better.

* * *

><p>She looks over at Derek, who's working silently on his files. It's been almost an hour since she found him working on the case files after the Twins case. He hasn't said a word to her since she agreed to help him. She wondered if he was still angry at her for the argument they had almost two weeks ago.<p>

"Derek… are we okay?"

He looks over at her. "We're fine."

"Really? Because you haven't said a word to me in an hour. You haven't really talked to me since you showed up at my place."

He leans back in his chair, looking at her. "What's going on with you and Reid?"

She and Reid had been hanging out a lot since their fake date. He had invited her to a documentary and she had actually enjoyed it. After his date with JJ, he had come over, unable to keep from talking about it. They had spent the whole night talking about football and movies and other things, his excitement from a good date keeping him too wired to sleep. She didn't mind; She, surprising, enjoyed the younger man's company. They had been get closer and Elle guessed that was showing at work.

"I thought you weren't jealous." She teases and he glares.

"He's 24 years old, Elle."

"So? I'm only… We're not that far apart in age."

He looks at her, disbelieving and her jaw drops, before she grabs a pen and chunks it at him. "I am not old!"

He ducks it easily and chuckles. "I'm not saying you're old! I'm just saying you're not 24."

"Derek Morgan, I will kick your ass."

He grins. "You'd try. I'd have you on the floor in seconds."

"Promise?" She grins.

The smile falls from his lips quickly and she sighs.

"I'm just kidding, Derek. I know. Team mates. Professional. We're friends, right? We can flirt."

He nods. "Of course."

She nods, moving back to her work, her mind moving back to his words. She wasn't too old for Reid…was she?

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Five

Elle leans against the door frame once Spencer opens it. "Hey, Elle."

"Hey, I'm sorry I'm late." She says, leaning towards him. He backs up, immediately and she smirks.

"I can't get a hug?" She purrs and Spencer frowns.

"Are you drunk?"

She leans back against the door. "A little."

Spencer looks at her. "A little? How many drinks is a little?"

"…four." She laughs at herself. She knows she might have overdone it, but Morgan had called her old!

Spencer nods, letting her in. She smirks and wraps her arms around him once the door is closed.

"You think I'm pretty, right?"

She feels him tense before his hands move to her hips to keep her stable as he takes a step back. "I…what is this about?"

"You don't think I'm old, right?" Reid was a smart man. He would tell her she wasn't old.

"No, of course not. You're what? 35?"

"Thirty-four!"

"That's not old at all. Morgan's Thirty-two. Hotch is… thirty nine? And Gideon's… " He frowns and she watches him as he thinks. He's cute when he thinks, bottom lip all pushed out. She frowns when he starts to speak again, her eyes move downward from his lips. "he has a 25 year old son, so he has to be atleast forty-five? Can you-you stop that?

She stops her hands from moving over his chest, before she looks up at him again.

"So you'd fuck me?" She says, clutching at the thin fabric of the button-up he wears.

Spencer flushes. "I-ahh.. I'd…Excuse me?"

"Derek won't fuck me." She frowns at her words. She shouldn't have said that. Well, too late now.

Spencer's eyebrows raise up. "Oh. Ohhh! You like Derek?"

"NO! I do not like Derek. I just wanted to fuck him. And he won't fuck me. But you'd fuck me, right?"

"I…I…Elle, this is very inappropriate and I…feel very uncomfortable with this."

She presses against him, leaning up to kiss him but he turns his head.

"You should go to bed." He says and she smirks, stepping away from him. She could go to bed, if he joined her. She could get him to join her. She strips off her shirt as she makes her way to the bedroom, looking back at him. She winks. Derek's loss could very much be Spencer's gain.

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Five

She ignores Spencer for the next few days at work, unable to face him. He had been a complete gentleman to her, letting her sleep in his bed while he slept on the couch. She had woken up to a water bottle and aspirin too. She knows she's overdid it and she's embarrassed. The case is the only thing that brings her to visit him again. She knocks on his door, wondering if she should leave. He answers before she can get away. She takes in the sight of him. He's wearing sweats and a red and black ringer t-shirt. He looks like a normal college kid. It's a little unnerving, seeing how he had just killed a man.

"Hey." He says, slowly.

"Hey, how are you feeling?"

He shrugs. "It hurts more now than it did then."

"Can I come in?"

"Of course! Of course." He steps to the side, letting her in.

"I think I should apologize for-"

"No. It's okay. It's actually pretty normal for women to go through moments of crisis because of their age, definitely after they reach thirty and are single, without children."

She stares at him. "Are you telling me I'm having a mid-life crisis?"

"I…" He frowns at her look. "No."

"Good answer." She moves to his couch. "So a movie?" She asks, trying to make things normal.

He nods. "Hitchcock or Welles?" He leans to grab one and winces. She looks at him.

"It hurts pretty bad, huh?"

He shrugs. "I've experienced worse."

She frowns. "Have you bathed?"

"I showered this morning." He says, confused. She shakes her head.

"No. A bath. You do have a bath tub don't you?"

She shakes her head when he looks back at her, looking a little lost. She gets up and moves into his bathroom. She whistles when she sees an large old-fashioned tub.

"What are you doing?"

She turns to look at him. "You have this amazing tub and you don't use it? I could smack you."

He merely blinks and she rolls her eyes before turning on the water. "You're taking a bath."

"What? No!"

"It'll help with your ribs. Come on, Reid. You've never taken a bath before?"

"No. It's a waste of water and do you know that the amount of dead skin cells that flake out during a bath. It's unsanitary."

She rolls her eyes before looking in his cabinets. She turns to him when she finds bubble bath. "Why?"

She asks, before adding some to the bath. Why not?

He looks at his feet. "Someone gave it to me in the Academy."

She watches him and decides it's best not to ask.

"Get in the bath. Relax. Enjoy it while I watch this movie."

He looks at her again and she holds her hand up.

"I will hurt you." She's joking. She would never hurt him, but she knows it'll work.

He closes his mouth and she smiles, ruffling his hair. "Really. If you don't feel better than I'll do something to repay you, but… I think you'll realize I'm right."

He pouts. "Okay."

She smiles. "Okay."

Deal Breaker || Breaking The Cycle || Chapter Five

She enters the bathroom, slowly and smiles when she sees the man, at ease. His eyes are closed and he's slouched in the water, almost completely covered.

"I was right, wasn't I?" She says, softly, trying not to spook him.

It doesn't work. He jumps and covers himself. She chuckles.

"I can't see your little Reid. Shower curtain, but…" She grabs the hand towel and hands it to him. He snatches it and she assumes covers himself.

"I went to the store while you were bathing. I got you some IcyHot to put on your ribs and some other lotion that's supposedly good for bruises. So when you get out, don't put on a shirt. Alright?"

"Okay."

She nods and starts to leave.

"Elle?" He calls out and she turns back to him.

"Yea?"

"Thanks."

She nods before leaving the bathroom.

Deal Breaker || Breaking The Cycle || Chapter Five

She looks up from the book when he comes out of the bathroom. He listened to her. He's standing in front of her barefooted, wearing only sweats, slung low on his hips. He shouldn't look so good, but he does. She shakes away the thoughts, blaming it on the fact she hasn't had sex in a month, and focuses on his bruises.

"Jesus Christ, Reid. You look like you got the shit kicked out of you."

"I bruise easily. It's not that bad."

"C'mere."

He hesitates before he comes a little closer.

"He didn't have to kick you so hard." She murmurs as her fingers move over the bruises. He inhales sharply and she looks up at him, quickly.

"It hurts that bad?"

He blushes. "No, uh.. Your-your fingers are just cold."

She hides her smirk, reaching in the bag for the medicinal lotions. She has a feeling it had nothing to do with her hands being cold. Her hands were never cold, it was a part of being Cuban. She adds some lotion to her hands before rubbing it over his sides. The muscles in his stomach ripple as he tenses. Muscles she didn't even think Spencer Reid had.

"It's cold." He murmurs.

"It'll heat up."

He grunts and she looks up at him before her hands run down his sides again. "Add the other stuff before you go to bed."

He nods, looking at her.

"It does feel better. Thank you."

"For someone who got your ass kicked a lot in high school, you sure don't know how to take care of yourself."

He sits next to her. "I know how to cover them. I know how to hide them. That's all that really mattered back then.."

She frowns, looking at him. They've never really talked about his childhood. He's starting to trust her more, she realizes and rests her head on his shoulder.

"Well you don't have to hide anything anymore, kiddo."

He nudges her. "I'm not a kid."

"Right." She sits up, looking over at his bare top. "Well, You definitely don't look like a kid with your shirt off." She teases and he rolls his eyes, his ears reddening but a smile on his lips.

"Shut up." He gets up and she pouts when he comes back with his shirt on.


	6. The Fox & Natural Born Killer

Elle leans back in her chair after she finishes her files on Karl Arnold. She stayed late to finish them, not wanting to wait any longer to get the files off her desk. There's something about cases about kids that are just…too much. Whether it's serial killers or sex crimes, things like that just shouldn't happen. This man had been a father, nonetheless. She didn't know how he could bring children in the world and then… be able to take someone's child away. She didn't have kids, she didn't know what it felt like to have a little her, but she had been close to her father before he had died and she had been his world. He had told her that having a child was the best thing in his life, but…she was an only child and she was spoiled, so maybe he was biased or just bluffing.

"What are you still doing here?"

She jumps. "Jesus Christ! Derek! You're not supposed to.. You're supposed to identify yourself!" She looks over at him after she calms down. He's in track pants and a sleeveless shirt.

He looks over at her before laughing. "What is up with you? 'Identify myself'? I'm not serving a warrant, I'm just getting a few files."

She shakes her head. "I'm sorry. I was just thinking about Karl Arnold and daddy issues."

He raises his eyebrow, but doesn't say anything, turning back to his files. He pauses, looking back at her. "Daddy issues?"

She looks at him annoyed. "I say daddy issues and now you're interested?"

He rolls his eyes. "I'm not interested. I mean.. I am interested… but in what you meant by it, not…"

She continues to stare at him before smirking. "Is the suave Derek Morgan tongue-tied?"

He shakes his head, grabbing his files. She watches him for a moment.

"Who's SM?"

"What?"

"Your tattoo." She nods at it. "It's a S and a M."

"Sean Morgan, my father. He died when I was 10." He looks back at his files and she frowns.

"How'd he die?"

"He was shot."

"I lost my father when I was 10 too. It sucks."

He gives a brief nod before he looks back up at her, holding up the files.

"Well, I'll see ya tomorrow."

"Were you and your dad close?" She asks and he pauses, turning back to her.

"Yeah. I loved my dad. He was a great man. Why?"

She shrugs. "Just curious." She continues to watch him, trying to figure out if his dad had anything to do with his abuse. She knows she's not supposed to profile him, but she's curious.

He looks back at her before sees the muscles tense. "My father was a good man, Elle. He was a cop. So whatever you think you know, you don't. Do you understand me? He was A. Good. Man."

"I didn't say he wasn't, Derek. Jesus."

He glares at her and she leans back in her chair.

"Did your mom remarry?"

He breathes out through his nose, dropping the files on his desk. "No. She didn't. She raised me and my two sisters, by herself. Doing the best she could. She was an excellent mother and never beat me or hurt me in anyway. Are we done here?"

She licks her lips, trying her best not to get snaky with him. Only someone who was abused would make sure to tell her he wasn't. "Yep. Have a great night."

He grabs the files of his desk and stomps out of the bullpen. She watches him as he leaves and sighs. She needs to get laid.

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Six

After her little talk with Morgan, she had gone straight home and went to bed, but the team had the next day off - an usual event Gideon and Hotch often made them do to put some distance between the horrors of the job. So, she had made her way over to her favorite geek's home. She smirks when Reid answers the door.

"You never leave this apartment, do you?"

She walks in without waiting for him to invite her in and turns back to him, waiting for his answer.

"I do things." He says with a frown. She smirks, falling against the couch.

"Yeah, like what? Go to the library?"

"Actually, there is a library 3.2 miles from here with an excellent selection of 15th century literature."

She stares at him amused and he rolls his eyes, sitting next to her.

"What about you? This is the third time this week you've shown up here."

"I quit drinking after… well, you know… so it's either the gym or here."

"You don't want to hang out with Morgan?" He asks, slightly amused, and she looks at him, annoyed.

"Shut up, Reid." She pushes at his shoulder. "Did you know his dad died?"

"When he was 10. Gunshot to the chest. Derek was there."

"Damn. Did you dad die, too, or something? Seems to be a fuckin' requirement for the BAU."

He gives her a self-deprecating smile. "No, my dad just left."

She turns to look at him with a frown. "I'm sorry, Spencer."

He shakes it away. "It's fine. Wasn't your fault."

"Wasn't yours, either."

He looks at shoes with a big of a shrug. She reaches over and ruffles his hair. "Stop thinking. It wasn't."

He wrinkles his nose and pushes his hair behind his hair again but her hand just messes it up again. He looks at her, exasperated and she chuckles.

"Have you ever thought about cutting your hair? I bet you'd look hot as hell with that just out of bed look." Her fingers brush through his hair before tugging slightly at the back of his scalp, her thumb brushing against his neck. He leans into the touch and she smirks.

"You have to be, ah.. Hot as hell to look it." He murmurs and she chuckles a little.

"Are you fishing for compliments, Dr. Reid?"

He looks over at her. "What does that mean?"

She rolls her eyes and leans over to kiss his cheek. "You're very handsome, Spencer."

He blushes, tucking his chin into his cheek. She chuckles before ruffling his hair again. "Now, go pick a movie."

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Six

She watches Reid as he rambles about something. She doesn't know what he's saying. She's not really paying attention. She has a tendency to zone out when he starts to ramble. It's not her fault, it's just that once he gets starts, the only way to stop him is interrupt or let him continue until he needs to breathe. She sees Morgan come in. He smirks when he sees that Spencer is in mid-rant with hand motions. She rolls her eyes, playfully and he moves to the break room to get a cup of coffee before Reid sucks him into the conversation. She watches as he moves away until he's out of her peripheral view before she looks back at Reid, who has stop talking and is giving her his "I know what you're thinking and I'm amused" look.

"What?"

"You DO like him!"

Her eyes widen as she stares at him. "A little louder, Reid? I don't think the deaf man downstairs heard you."

He stares at her like she's insane and she shakes her head, looking behind her to make sure Morgan's not standing behind her or anything.

"We… It's complicated."

"Of course, it is. Morgan never sleeps with the same girl twice."

"Spencer Reid!" She smirks, impressed at his blunt assessment of their fellow co-worker.

"What? It's true!" He says, quickly. "Not that there's anything wrong with that if the woman understands that and I.. I mean, you must understand that, it being the reason it's complicated, right?"

She smirks at his ramble. "Somewhat."

She sees Morgan returning and Spencer looks down at his book, trying to make it appear that they hadn't just been talking about the older man and failing miserably. Sometimes she just wanted to smack the boy in the head for his inability to just relax. Derek notices Reid's odd behavior and looks at Elle, who just shakes her head.

"You okay, Reid?"

He nods before grabbing his cup and moving to the break room. Elle chuckles at him, under her breath, when he gives her a thumbs up.

"Sometimes I worry about him."

"You're not the only one." She muses and he looks over at her. She gives him a smile.

"I'm sorry about my inferences. I didn't mean to offend you." She says, softly and Derek just nods before going back to his work. She's about to say something else when Gideon comes down the stairs.

"Case in Baltimore. Meet in the garage in 15 minutes." 


	7. Derailed

She spends most of her time with Spencer on the Perotta case, which she didn't mind. She was getting closer with Reid and she enjoy their moments together. After the case, they meet up again at his apartment for a movie about a hit-man. It's feels kind of morbid, laughing over a movie so similar to a case they just solved, but it helps wind down too.

She turns to Reid for help when she gets her first custodial, asking for his help on what she should do and ask. It's kind of unnerving, but he makes it simple. It's one of his rambles that she listens to completely.

It's not until she realizes that there's a gun-man on the train that she wishes she had asked him to come with her, but she's glad she didn't too. She wouldn't want him on this train too. And then the smartest man she knows does something so incredibly dumb - and he does get on the train and takes off his vest. But in the end, he saves her, revealing a secret that she didn't know about him.

She gets released from the hospital after an hour of being there and Spencer drives her home, quietly. He told her that he was just acting, to talk Bryar down, but he's too quiet on the ride home.

He walks her up to her door.

"I'm glad you're safe." He says, stuffing his hands into his pockets and focusing on his shoes.

"Yeah, me too." She grins. "You want to come in?" She asks, a little softer, grin gone.

He looks up at her. "It's getting late." His tone matches hers before she steps down one of the stairs to be eye level with him.

"I know that. I, at the very least, owe you a drink. Come on."

He locks eyes with her. "I thought you quit drinking."

"I could have died, I think I deserve to let loose a little."

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Seven

She can feel his eyes on her as she turns on music so she gives him a bit of a show. She sways her hips with the music before she looks over her shoulder at him. He lowers his eyes immediately, ears burning with the realization he had been caught. She chuckles, making her way over to him, slowly. He raises his eyes up back to her as she gets closer, glass of vodka in his hand. She sips it before smirking. He takes back the glass with a frown and sets it down. She chuckles at him.

"What, magic man, can't drink after me?"

He gives her a playful look. "I'm not much of a drinker. One is enough for me."

"Then how am I going to get you naked?"

He looks at her, quickly and she smirks, ruffling his hair. "I'm teasing, Niño. Calm down. Come on, let's watch a movie or something."

She grabs his hand and pulls him to the living room, which he follows without trouble. She puts in a movie, not really paying attention to it much at all. She just doesn't want the man to leave yet. He watches the movie, closely and she rests her head on his shoulder. He turns to look at her, make sure she's okay, before he looks back at the screen. She moves back a few minutes later, watching him. She hadn't been lying when she told him he was handsome. With the right haircut and better clothes, he'd be a pretty hot man. She smirks. She shouldn't be thinking of Reid like that. They were friends. Still, it had been two months since she had gotten any and she was starting to get a little antsy. And the boy had saved her life, he deserved a little something. She scoots closer again, resting her head on his shoulder. This time he doesn't even acknowledge it. She moves a little closer before her mouth moves against his neck. He shivers immediately and she smirks at his sensitivity. He pulls away when he feels her breath against his neck again.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm pretty sure I was about to kiss your neck."

His eyes close briefly and he shakes his head. "I know what you were doing! I mean…"

She pushes fingers to his lips. "Just go with it, Spence." She leans towards him against, kissing the spot she can kissed before, amused when he reacts the same way again. She sucks softly and his hands move to her shoulders, pushing her back.

"We-We-We can't…can't, uh…do that. You can't do that."

She smirks. "I think I already did, Magic Man." She leans in again, nibbling against the skin, his fingers tightening around her arms. He doesn't tug her back this time as she nibbles up, her tongue teasing the skin near his ear. He vocally approves, but still pulls back.

"Elle…not-not like this." He murmurs and she pauses slightly. Not like this? She sits back in her seat, looking at him, waiting for him to continue.

"You're… you just went through a terrifying experience and I was the one that helped you escape it, so you're feeling-"

She grunts. "Don't give me the psychological bullshit, Spencer."

He stares at her, licking his lips. She moves back towards him.

"What I went through wasn't the normal day, of course, but it was part of the job. I signed up for the FBI, knowing the dangers, alright? So don't give me that bullshit. If I was a victim on a case or something, alright. Pscyhoanalyze me all you want, but I know what I'm doing. I know what I want." She purrs the ending and leans up against him. She groans when he pushes her back again.

"Elle, I'm not comfortable with this." He pushes her back and stands up. She breathes through her nose, looking up at him. She gets up and is right next to him when he turns back to her. He didn't expect it and takes a step back before he focuses on her.

"We're friends."

"Who've kissed." She reminds him and his eyes fall to her lips at the words.

"Yes, but we've never been on a date. It would be very ungallant of me to take advantage of you."

"We've been on a date and spent multiple events together. Plus, You wouldn't be taking advantage of me, Spence. I'm asking for it." Her arms go around his neck, seeing the frown, he's trying to work through it in his head. He's in his mind, but his hands move up, running over her skin. She presses against him.

"You're thinking about this too hard." She murmurs, her lips moving back to his neck. He tilts his head to the side, giving her access to the skin, which she takes full advantage of. She presses her hips into his. "Pay attention to your body. sus necesidades."

His hips push into hers as the Spanish words and she smirks against his skin.

"Oh, you like that, don't you?" She sucks on his earlobe. "I would do whatever you asked of me, my love." She purrs in Spanish, before nipping at his ear. "I would-"

She's interrupted when he turns his head and captures her lips with his. It's a messy intense kiss, unlike the one they shared on the steps weeks ago. It's hard and rough, desire shining through, but showing his inexperience. It doesn't matter, though. His lips are soft and he makes up in passion for what he likes in experience. He hands move to his belt as they continue to kiss and he pulls back, looking at her hands.

"I… stop."

She groans, her hands stilling on his belt. He doesn't pull back though, so she looks at him confused. He licks his lips again, eyes raising to hers slow.

"Just…could we… just a little slower." He asks, his voice thick. She raises an eyebrow, asking for more of an explanation. He flushes as he speaks. "It's, uh… It's been a while and -"

Her chuckle cuts him off as she leans into to kiss him again. "Papi, we can go as long as you like." She murmurs against his lips before capturing his bottom lip in between her teeth and letting it go slow. He grunts and kisses her again. She lets him control the speed, encouraging him when he tugs up her shirt. Her fingers start to undo the buttons his shirt as his lips explore her neck. Once she pushes his shirt off his shoulders, he steps into her.

"Bedroom?" He murmurs against her pulse point and she pulls back to smirk, hands moving back to his belt, tugging him towards the room.

* * *

><p>To those who may want the "M" rated version of this, review or message me and if I get more than one or two, I'll write it in all of Reid's awkward goodness. :P<p> 


	8. Popular Kids

Author's Note: So as of now... I'm trying to keep this story as a T rating, but seeing how much fun I had writing the Elle/Reid scene (which is now up, go check it out if you wanna. It's called Derailed and it's rated M (duh.)) this story will probably end up turning M too, so meh. But even it does, I'll make the M-stuff it's own chapter and not necessary to read with big warnings so if y'all who don't wanna read the dirty parts, lol, can skip over that without too much trouble and still enjoy the story. Also! This part has the scene from Hollow (from the original DB Elle/Morgan stuff) in it. I really loved that scene and I didn't want to take it out, but I think it fits better now? I don't know you can be the judge of that. Enjoy, mi amors.

* * *

><p>They had spent the weekend in each other's company. Elle wakes to see the man asleep next to her, sheet barely covering his hips. She smirks, he had definitely proven that he was giving. She watches as his eyes flutter open. He gives her a tired, satisfied smile.<p>

"Hey." He leans over to kiss her shoulder as she ruffles his hair.

"Spencer… you know that this isn't…I mean we aren't a couple or anything now, right?"

He looks at her confused before his mind catches up. "Yeah, of course."

Elle nods and kisses him. "Good, because I didn't want you to think…."

"No. no. Actually, there are very few animals that are monogamous and humans alone aren't supposed to be, because the women only produce so many eggs that having multiple partners -"

She kisses him to shut him up, only pulling back when she knows he's not going to finish his little speech. She pulls back and he licks his lips.

"I understand." He says and she nods before getting up.

"You hungry?" She says, pausing at the door. She can see that his eyes are nowhere near her face and smirks at his outright stare. "Spencer…"

He raises his eyes slow. "What?"

"Food. You want some?"

He furrows his brow. "You're going to cook naked. That's not very safe."

She laughs. "Do you want something to eat or not?"

"Yes, yes, please."

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Eight

She catches the two men's conversation about late nights and hopes that Spencer doesn't spill their little secret. Luckily, he doesn't. He mentions nightmares and she frowns before making her way into the room. They have a case, she can't continue to snoop.

Throughout the case, Derek keeps giving her strange looks, as if he knows something. She guesses she doesn't hide it very well. She did choose to wear something more revealing than usual to tease with the younger man and she did touch the genius a little more than usual. She almost thinks that Derek tells Gideon and Hotch about the nightmares just to mess with the man, but she doesn't think Derek is that much of ass. At least she hopes he isn't.

By the end of the case, Derek and Spencer seem closer than ever and she's glad that they two got over whatever the reason that might have caused the tension. She makes her way up to the BAU after the case. She decides to bring some case files home, maybe she can get Spencer to read them and summarize for her so she doesn't have to spend tomorrow stuck in the never-ending pile.

"You fucked him." She turns to see Morgan.

"Excuse me?"

"You had sex with Reid." he clarifies and she sighs.

"So?"

"So, I thought you and I had this talk."

"No. We agreed he was 24 and that was about the end of conversation. I know how old he is and believe me, the age thing… has it's advantages." She winks.

He glares. "You can't use him, Elle."

"I'm not using him, Derek. He's a big boy. He knows what he's doing." She smirks. "In more way than one."

"Will you stop that!" He growls. She laughs, leaning against her desk, looking at him.

"You are jealous, aren't you?" She smirks. She changes tactics from last time. "You want to fuck him, Derek? Is that it?"

He steps towards her. "I'm not gay."

She doesn't flinch. She knows Derek would never touch her. She presses up against him. "It's not that big of a deal, Derek. I mean… The gang might be a little surprised, finding out you've never even slept with a woman, but -"

"I'm not gay!" He yells.

She looks up at him. "Then…?"

"Then what? Just because I didn't want to sleep with you doesn't mean I'm gay or there's something wrong with me, Elle."

"You're right. If you had just turned me down. But you didn't. You had me half-naked, willing and wanting and you freaked out. You know that means, Derek? Means something caused you to freak out and it wasn't me, so what was it?"

He glares. "Don't profile me, Elle."

"And I think that it had something to do with something happened to you as a child. Probably pre-pubescent or during puberty. And by the way you reacted to being gay, I assume it was a man. But regardless, abuse like that changes how you think about sex. It becomes wrong and dirty and not something you can do to someone you care about. It's a necessity to how your body reacts and you do it to get rid of that reaction and that's all. So when you had me in clutches, you realized that I was team mate and you had to care about me. You couldn't do something like that to me. It's why you're so pissed off that I'm having sex with Reid, because you think that I'm hurting him, but baby," She smirks, "he's in anything but pain when he's with me." She winks and pushes against him, grabbing the files off her desk.

"You don't know anything." he calls out as she begins to walk away. He sounds angry. "You don't know anything." His tone changes. It's almost pained. She turns around to look at him.

"Then tell me instead of just getting pissed of, Derek." She stares at him, giving him a chance to not be an ass before she walks out of the BAU. She had tried to get him to open up and instead he had continued to stay locked up and angry about it. She wasn't going to deal with anymore. She enjoyed her job, she enjoyed the friendships she had made already. She didn't need to be closer to Derek than they were. She was done trying to get him to be her friend.

He breathes through his nose, but he doesn't say anything. She watches him before shaking her head.

"Exactly what I thought." Elle says before moving towards the elevator.

Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Eight

Spencer had agreed to her suggestion of him reading her files, making a comment about how half the files would end up on his desk if he didn't. He was right; she'd slip as many as she could onto his desk during his coffee breaks whether he helped her or not. It was his fault for telling them about his ability to read that fast. They work until late that night and he leaves around 10 to do 'errands', he calls them, but she thinks that he just wants some alone time. She was learning that he was like that, whether if it was a group of twenty or two, he needed to get away to be by his self. She continues to work on some of the files, in a rhythm and not wanting to break it. She didn't want to end up thinking about Derek. She knows that she had pushed hard with the man and wondered if it was really because she was worried about him and not selfish reasons. He had turned her down, was she just looking for an excuse that something was wrong with him when there really wasn't anything there? God, she hoped she wasn't that much of a bitch. She sighs, closing the file in front of her. She needed a drink. She got up and grabbed her coat, making her way to the bar.  
>She wants to laugh when she sees Derek sitting here, nursing a drink. It doesn't look like his first either. She breathes out and sits next to him.<p>

"Hey." She says softly.

He barely acknowledges her.

"I'm sorry about what I said. I was angry."

"You were right. It wasn't my dad though. My dad was good man." He says, looking in his glass. "It was my coach."

She breathes out, unsure of what to say. He had just mentioned that she was right. He just admitted to being molested. The next thing she says could have an affect over everything and she's speechless. She wishes she had ordered a drink first, because she could use one now. She breathes out, looking back at him. He had just admitted his biggest secret. He needed support.

"Derek." She reaches out and grabs her hand.. "It's okay."

"It is not okay." He says it's loud and she understands he's hurting. He tugs his hand away before he turns to face her, feeling the bar patrons' eyes on them. He lowers his voice before he speaks again. "It is not okay and if you tell anyone, ANYONE, I swear, Elle…I…." He clenches his jaw before getting up and walking out the door.

"Derek." She calls after him, following him.

He doesn't say anything. He just keeps walking.

"Derek." She says, getting in front of him.

"I wasn't saying that it wasn't a big deal. It is a big deal, but I'm… It doesn't change things between us."

He snorts before he glares. She knows that it changes everything for him, but it doesn't give him the right to just walk away.

She puts her hands on his chest. "Derek, stop! You stubborn asshole, I'm trying to tell you that I understand."

"You understand? You. Understand? What? Because your two years in sex crimes, you understand right? I'm just like all the other people that walked into your life, all fucked up because someone touched them, right? Because you were able to figure out my secret? Well, I 'm not. I'm not like that, Elle. And I won't be treated like a victim, do you understand me?"

"You are a victim, Derek."

He snarls at her, moving past her.

"Whatever happened to you wasn't your fault."

He turns, his eyes blazing.

"You don't think I know that? I didn't ask him to touch me, I didn't ask for him…" He pauses, his anger fading into something else. "For him to make me…." His jaw clenches after his emotions choke his words. He can't voice the words and she understands. She wouldn't be able to say it either. She reaches out to him, nervously, not wanting to make the situation worse again. She feels him completely tense up, but he doesn't move. She wraps his arms around his neck, pulling him close. She doesn't know what to say to him. She can't use the training she has with him. He knows all the tricks and the trades. He knows all that already, so she just holds on to him, letting him know someone's there. She holds him close and when his arms wrap around her, she breathes out, hoping she's helped more than hurt.


	9. Blood Hungry

**Author's Notes: **Alright. has anyone noticed that the Criminal Minds timeline sucks? Well I had. and I finally figured it out. So I'm going to explain it to you guys, somewhat. Well, what's necessary for what's already been done. So Elle joins the team in September/October 2004. The first six cases pretty much happen one every week. Then between Episode 6 and 7, there's some time that lapses, like a month or so. and then the next case takes like a month. and then Derailed/Popular Kids all happen within a week or so of each other, in January/February of 2005. And then there's like a month between Popular Kids and Blood Hungry. So by the time this chapter here happens, Elle's been a part of the team for 6 months. She and Reid are close, They've been friends since In Plain Sight (the fake date), which happened in like Early November. Following? I hope so.

* * *

><p>Derek is perfectly professional the next work day. He doesn't even mention the night before. It's odd and it throws her. After the daily briefing, she follows him into the break room<p>

"You okay?" She asks, getting her cup.

He raises his eyebrows, looking at her confused. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

She frowns and shakes her head. "No reason."

She fills her cup before moving back to the bullpen. She should have expected this, but she really thought they had made some break through.

"Everything alright?" Spencer asks and she looks up him. She almost wished she could ask Spencer about it, but she knew that Derek would have a fit. She gives her best fake smile.

"Yeah. You comin' over tonight?" She asks, changing the subject to get his mind off of it. Spencer flushes, looking back at his files when JJ walks through the bullpen. Elle smirks, wondering if any one in the office knew what their little genius was up to. She imagined JJ would never believe that the man was involved in a purely sexual relationship. Hotch and Gideon wouldn't believe either - Spencer Reid was their golden child. Garcia might; she was the only one that seemed to tease Reid like the adult he was, but then again, Garcia teased everyone.

She could understand why no one treated Spencer like he was an adult. Everyone was nearly or more than 10 years older than him, well… other than JJ. How old was JJ? Elle guessed she was still around 5 years older than Reid.

"Maybe." He finally murmurs when the coast is clear. He sees Morgan make his way back to his desk, after most likely visiting with Garcia. "I have to finish an article." Spencer says, watching the man.

"Alright, smarty pants."

Spencer gives her a playful smile before he concentrates on his work. She looks to see Derek watching them, thoughtful and winks at him.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Nine**

The next case is just disturbing. Even more disturbing than the idea of Gideon skydiving. She doesn't get how anyone could eat someone. It's just… well, disturbing. She had gone to Spencer's after the case and the two were enjoying dinner. Well… Spencer was enjoying dinner, she was having a hard time eating meat.

"Have you ever thought about becoming a vegetarian?" She asks, pushing away the carton of sesame chicken.

Spencer looks at her, fork in hand. "As long as with the right protein content, it's a very healthy decision for someone to do."

"Right, but would you do it?"

He shrugs, thinking about it. "Why?"

She leans back in her chair. "I don't know. This case."

She sees Spencer look at his food with a disgusted look before pushing it away too. She laughs.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Nine**

Elle walks up to her house, seeing Derek sitting on the steps. It's been three weeks since Derek had admitted to being molested.

"Hey." She says, pulling out her keys. "You haven't been there long have you?"

He shrugs, standing. "Out with your boyfriend?" He asks and she stares at him.

"Spencer isn't my boyfriend, Derek."

He rolls his eyes and she sighs.

"We talked about this already, Derek. Yes, I'm sleeping with him. We're friends who have fun, it's not that big of a deal."

"It is. It's a big deal."

She watches him. "Derek, I'm not hurting him. I wouldn't make him do anything he doesn't want to do."

"You're his friend though. We're a team. You-you don't-"

She waits as he clenches his jaw, tries to find how to word what he wants to say. She doesn't belittle him for stuttering or not having any words this time.

"You don't do that to someone you care about."

She sucks in her bottom lip, unsure of what to say, before she walks past him to unlock the door. "C'mon, let's talk about this inside."

He follows her, but he doesn't sit. He looks around the house. She can tell he's profiling her stuff. She doesn't say anything, moves to the kitchen to grab some beers. She hands him one as she returns and sits on the couch.

"You know some people call the act of sex 'making love'."

He snorts and opens the beer. She sips her own as he moves around her living room, looking at her stuff.

"It's actually better if you care about the person you know?"

He turns to look at her. "Maybe if you're sadistic."

"What about married couples?"

He shrugs it off, ignoring the question at first before he stops in front of a picture of her and her family. It's before her dad died and her mom got way too much into alcohol. They look happy, it's why she keeps it there.

"How old were you when he died?"

"Eight."

He nods. "My parents were happy. I remember my dad would bring home a bouquet of flowers every month after a late shift. She'd take them and tell him how beautiful they were and he'd come back and say that they were no where as beautiful as her."

Elle smiles at the memory. "They sound great, Derek. They sound very much in love and they made you, so… why can't the two acts be joined? Why can't someone have sex with someone they care about?"

"You don't do THAT to someone you love."

"What your coach did isn't right, no… but sex in general… You don't hurt the women you sleep with, do you?"

"No!" He turns sharply, looking at her. "They consent completely without any drugs in their system. I would never make a woman sleep with me."

"Of course, Derek. I'm not saying that. I'm saying…" She licks her lips. "Do they come?"

He looks confused by the question. "I.. I guess?"

She tries to not make a smart comment. She bits her tongue. It's not his fault, she reminds herself. He's selfish in his needs because he's just doing it to fill the need. He doesn't care about the other person because in his first experience, he was not cared about. He wasn't an ass. Okay, he was a complete ass, but it wasn't all his fault.

"Why do you have sex, Derek?"

He shrugs. "I didn't want to be different."

"How so?"

He shrugs again before he sits next her, playing with the wrapper on the bottle.

"I was a football player. The popular kids at school, you know? They all talked about all the girls they felt up and how they did things to each other."

"So you did it to fit in?"

"Not in high school. Carl was…. I didn't want to do that to someone else. But in college, it got worse. It was all about how many women you had slept with and… I don't know.. I figured the way they talked about it, that… maybe with a girl, it was better. So I dated a girl… and I don't know, once I felt ready we…. Started and she told me she loved me and… I don't know.. I felt sick.. I didn't want to do anything… Carl had said the same thing to me, you know? Any way, I told my best friend that Carmen had dumped me and he took me out and we got drunk and I had sex with a girl I didn't know and…. It felt good, you know? So I kept doing it and talking about it and everyone thought I was cool…so…" He shrugs, focusing on the wrapper.

Elle doesn't know what to say. She reaches out to rest her hand on top of his. "Derek, he didn't love you."

"I know that. I know that he didn't. I know that." He says, frustrated. "I know Carmen really did care about me too, but it just… God, I am all fucked up, aren't I?"

"No. You're not."

He looks at her and she smiles, her thumb running over the back of his hand.

"Can… Can I stay here for a while?" He asks. "I can't sleep lately and…"

"Of course. I think Spencer left a couple movies over, if you want to watch one?"

He nods, before he thinks about it. He makes a face. "Oh god, is it Star Wars?"

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter Nine**

She runs her fingers over his back as he sleeps. They had watched two movies before he started to relax. It was almost three now and she was exhausted. She lifts his head before sliding out from under him, stuffing a pillow under his head before she moves to her bedroom.

"Elle?" He calls softly and she pauses to turn around.

"Hmm?" She says, just as softly. His eyes are still closed and he's still relaxed.

"Thank you."

She smiles to herself before making her way to bed.


	10. What Fresh Hell

**Author's Notes: **So yesterday, I started to figure out the CM timeline and pretty much, other than some things. I made a mistake pushing some together closer than they were supposed, so I'm going retry that again. It's so difficult so excuse the errors. Thing is about this story, that in one chapter, it can jump a month or so, but from now on, I'll try my best to add that in (and maybe go back to the beginning chapters and change some things too. I added a sentence to the last chapter to show that.) So here's the time line so far. Elle joins in September/October the first six cases are basically one week apart. Then there's like a month between that and the Fox. so the Fox happens in like December/January. Natural Born Killer follows right after that one. and then Derailed/Popular Kids happen in February. and then some time goes by (3 weeks-ish) and then Blood Hungry/What the Fresh Hell happen in March. So it's March in this story. The weather on the show is always sunny, so it's hard to tell when its supposed to be when, so i'm using that to my advantage. :P. I hope I didn't confuse y'all too much. Enjoy the next chapter.

* * *

><p>It's been a couple days since Derek's visit and he's been over every day since. He would always say that it was because he didn't have anything better to do or that he hadn't found a woman worth sleeping with and give her that dazzling grin he gave everyone. But she knew it was something more.<p>

She walks into the BAU to see Derek and Reid talking about some sci-fi movie that was about to come out. She catches bits about it, knowing it was the same movie that Spencer had asked her to go to. She had turned him down. A documentary she could handle, but a science fiction nerdy flick she just couldn't do. No matter how much he pouted and begged. And he had begged. She ruffles the genius' hair as she passes him and makes her way to her desk. She frowns, seeing that the pile from yesterday had seemingly doubled over night. Thanks, JJ. She looks over at Spencer who is elaborately sharing something with Derek. She takes a few of the files before tossing them on the top of Reid's. Morgan notices and smirks. She winks at him before starting to work on the first of a full day.

She works for an hour before she gets up, making her way to the break room. She smirks when she smells the scent of a man behind her. She looks over her shoulder to spot Spencer, standing near the door, looking a little shy. She smirks.

"Hey sexy." She says before turning back to her cup.

"Hi." She stirs her drink before turning towards him. "You got something you need to say?"

He looks at his shoes with a shrug. "I was just wondering if… you know, tonight…."

She bites the inside of her cheek from keep from smiling as she steps towards him. "You want to come over tonight?" She asks in Spanish before asking a much more vulgar question.

He flushes, looking over his shoulder making sure no one heard her. He slouches a little, pulling his body away from hers as if the mere touch would make him do something illegal in public. "I'd…uh… I'd like that."

She winks as she walks passed him towards her desk. She spots Derek, looking in her direction as she sits back down. She wonders if he'll be coming over again tonight.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 10**

There's a knock and then another. She groans, looking at the clock. It's almost 2 am. If that was Morgan, she really was going to kick ass, judo training or not. She sits up, seeing the man laying next to her. She groans, this wasn't good. She shakes his shoulder.

"Reid."

He grunts and there's another knock. That gets his attention; he raises his head looking at her, confused.

"Who's that? It's 2 am." His hair is in his hair and he's wearing the sleepy hazy look that makes him look way less smart than he is. He pushes his hair out of his face and he reaches for his holstered weapon. She smirks and leans into kiss him.

"It's probably Derek. I don't think you'll need that, Hero."

He flushes before the confused look comes back. "Derek?"

"I live close to the bar. He comes over when he's too drunk to drive home." She lies. Spencer doesn't need to know the details. "Get dressed."

She gets out of bed, slipping on the nearest shirt, buttoning it up a few before opening the front door. She's right, it's Derek, but tonight her lie isn't a lie. He's drunk. Plastered. She frowns.

"What's up?"

"You."

"I'm up?"

He snorts and pushes inside. "You're…." He frowns. "You did this!"

"I got you wasted? How did you even walk here, Derek? You can barely stand up."

He rolls his eyes. "I'm fine. I'm just fu-" He tilts his head, looking behind her. He laughs. "Pret-ty boy, Nice to see you here! Havin' alit-tle fun?" He says, hiccupping in the middle.

She looks behind her to see Spencer standing there, hair still crazy, clothes wrinkled. He opens his mouth to speak but he doesn't know what to say and closes his mouth, which only makes Derek chuckle more.

"I see it! I see it. I didn't…" He looks back to Elle, swaying a little. "But I see it now. Makin' a man out of the little boy. That's what you like, huh? Getting the…the…." He makes a face, unable to figure out what he's trying to say.

Elle looks back at Spencer. "You should go, we'll be fine."

He doesn't look convinced. "Are you…"

"Spencer, go."

"Yeah, Speeeencer. Go." Derek says before flopping down on the couch.

Spencer looks between the two before nodding. "I'll, uh, see you at work." He murmurs before getting out of the house quickly.

"the one you think you can't get!" Morgan finishes his sentence from earlier. She turns back to him.

"Is that what you think this is, Derek? You and Reid are challenges?"

"Reid's not a challenge. Wrapped nice around your little finger."

"But you're a challenge?" She asks, stepping up to him, looking over him. He smirks.

"I'm interesting."

She doesn't say anything. "Because I'm all fucked up. But you're the one that fucked me up."

She snorts. "I didn't molest you, Derek."

He glares and stands up, quickly in anger. He doesn't like being face to face with his abuse. "Shut up."

She glares and pushes him back against the couch. He stumbles and falls back to the couch, glaring up at her.

"You going to get drunk is not my issue, Derek. Do you understand? It's not my job to baby you. You came to my house. You don't get to sit here and disresp-"

"I can't do it anymore!"

She stares at him. "Do what?"

"Have sex! You fucked me up."

She laughs and he glares. She clears her throat. "I didn't cause you to-"

"You brought it back up. You made me this way!"

"Well maybe you'll deal with your issues then! Coming over here, bitching at me isn't going to help anything."

He glares again, crossing his arms over his chest. He looks like a little boy. She sighs, moving to the closet and grabbing a blanket and extra pillow before tossing them at him.

"Go to bed." She orders. "You're drunk. We aren't talking about this now."

"We have to talk about this now. I can't-"

She turns. "We aren't talking about this now."

She moves into her bedroom, closing the door.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 10**

She wakes up to find him gone. It doesn't surprise her. He's too proud to apologize for coming over drunk. She gets ready for work before driving in. Derek's there when she gets there. He doesn't talk to her. She doesn't expect him to. She looks across to see Spencer, busy with his work. He doesn't acknowledge anything. His discomfort amuses her. She could only imagine how embarrassed he had to be last night. He didn't know that Derek already knew and then he was face to face with the man. She snickers to herself, realizing how embarrassed the man had to be. Spencer looks up at her and she just shakes her head, composing herself. She sees Derek look over at them out of the corner of her eye. She snickers again, remembering Derek's reaction to the man. Spencer continues to stare at her, wondering what amusing her. Derek looks angry and she bet he assumes she's laughing at him.

JJ saves her though, calling out about a missing kids case. There's nothing funny about a missing child. 


	11. Poison

**Author's note:**I just re-watched The Fox. Reid was a little confident in his interrogation ability, dontcha think? He was pretty bad ass. And Gideon is intense! Geez. For those reading Life (You should go read it if you haven't) I still won't be posting a new chapter until Monday, but… I finished one (of four papers due by then) and I thought I'd reward myself with some Elle goodness. Oh and I have a question? This story is going to follow Elle mostly after Aftermath/The Boogeyman (those are the names of her last episodes aren't they?), so.. Do you guys want a companion piece to this story, that shows Morgan's POV through all this and that? Or I mean, is the show enough for that for y'all? Leave your thoughts in a Review, or PM me for further conversations. Or just PM to chat, because… I need a reason to procrastinate.

* * *

><p>Elle doesn't talk to Morgan (other than about case related issues) during the case or the days that follow. He doesn't come to her house either. He barely acknowledges that she exists if he doesn't have to for the next couple weeks. He and Reid, on the other hand, seem even closer. Reid wouldn't stop talking about how Derek had gone with him to the sci-fi movie they had been talking about weeks ago. They were closer and that didn't anger Elle or anything. She was glad. She knew that Reid looked up to the older man and that Derek thought of Reid as the little brother he never had. She was glad they were getting along, but she didn't understand how the man could not be angry with Reid, but be angry with her. Reid was doing the same things she was doing. He was having sex with someone he cared about, just as she was. Of course, she was the one that knew about his abuse, but it wasn't her fault that he was that way or that he thought the way he did. She looks over at him as he works. He needed to just get over his anger at her and at the end of the day, she makes her way over to his house to end the silent treatment.<p>

He opens the door and she sees the dog first. It's the ugliest dog she's ever seen.

She raises her eyes from the chubby, droopy, and toothy dog. "Hey."

He must notice the look. "Elle, this is Clooney. Clooney, Elle."

She laughs at the name. "After George Clooney? Please, Derek."

He frowns. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"That dog is butt ugly!"

He looks offended. He kneels over and picks up the fat dog. "He is not! Don't listen to her, she's just jealous."

She looks at him, surprised he's talking to the dog, but ignores it. "I just came over to talk. You've been ignoring me."

"I didn't have anything to say." He sets the dog on the couch before looking back at her.

"You sure had something to say when you got drunk."

"I was having a bad week." He mutters, moving to the kitchen.

"So you decided to come over and take it out on me? How is that right? And now you're acting like it's my fault."

She watches him as he tenses. He doesn't say anything, so she continues to push.

"I didn't cause you to feel the way you feel, Derek. I didn't moles-"

"You made me feel it again!" He slams his hands against the counter. "I was doing fine and you brought it up again! You made me feel like this!"

She stares at him. "Made you feel like what, Derek?"

"Like I'm…" He breathes in, clenches his jaw. "Like I'm doing the same thing."

She frowns. "How did I make you feel like that? I would never-"

He shakes his head. "I don't care for these women. I don't even know their names sometimes. I mean, I ask, but I don't really care. I just…I use them….like-like he used me, so how am I any different?"

Elle sits on the bar stool, looking at him as he struggles. He's not a bad guy at all. She had been a little annoyed at him during their talk, how he did just use women, but when faced with the realization of what he was doing, he was remorseful. He did feel bad.

"The fact that you're asking yourself makes you different." She reaches out to grab his hand. "You're not him, Derek."

"But I do-"

"You aren't forcing these women, Derek. You aren't doing anything that hurts them. They want you. You give them that dazzling grin of yours and flirt and they fall into your charm, they agree to go home with you. You aren't doing anything wrong."

He doesn't look convinced.

"You know I would kick your ass if it was like that." She teases him a little. He looks at her for a moment before chuckling, shaking his head.

She smiles, reaching out to run her hand over his head. "Now tell me about this dog. Why in the world did you pick the ugliest one?" She asks, trying to lighten the mood.

He looks at her before his eyes move to the dog on the couch with a hint of a pout. "He's an English bulldog and he is not ugly."

She looks back at the fat dog on the couch. "Uh huh."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 11**

A week passes much differently than the last two. A couple nights out of the week, she finds herself at Derek's, walking the ugly dog. She had never thought Morgan would have a dog, much less like the one he had, but thinking about it and watching how much he cared for it, it made sense. He was looking for something to be close to, but unable to build a lasting relationship with a woman - so a dog was the next best thing. And Morgan loved his dog. He moves to a bench to sit, rubbing the dog's stomach as it lays out, enjoying the break. Derek looks up at her before she sits down next to him, making sure the dog doesn't touch her. Derek gives her a look.

"What? Are you a cat person?" He asks and she gives him unimpressed look.

"I'm not an animal person in general."

He chuckles, shaking his head. "How can you not like animals? You need a little Chihuahua or something."

She raises an eyebrow before she scoffs. "If I was going to get a dog, it'd be a pit or a Rottweiler."

He looks impressed. "Remind me not get on your bad side, woman."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 11**

After the LSD case, Derek and Elle go to the bar to celebrate the lives saved. She watches him as he watches a woman. She follows his stare before smirking when she sees a curvy Latina. "Good choice," She muses.

He turns his attention back to her. "What?"

"The woman. She's _caliente_."

He smirks. "Oh, you think so?"

She shrugs. "Women aren't really my type, but…I think you should go talk to her."

He watches her for a moment before looking back at his drink. "I don't think so."

She rolls her eyes and grabs her drink before moving over to the woman. One day she was going to use this as blackmail. The time where she got the suave Derek Morgan a date. Well, a girl for the night. She smiles at the woman.

"Hey."

The woman looks at her like she's insane and she might be. "Uh… I'm not…. I mean, I'm flattered, but…"

Elle snorts. "Oh god no. You see that fine black man by the bar?"

She waits until the woman's eyes reach Derek. "He's been watching you all night, but he's a little shy to come over and say hello, so…I thought I could introduce you to him."

The girl agrees and Elle introduces the two before winking at the man and paying her tab. If Derek was going to get a little lovin' tonight, why shouldn't she either? She leaves bar, pulling her phone out to call Spencer.

There's a loud knock on the door and Spencer grunts. "Derek?'

"Probably."

He grunts again, pulling the blanket over his head. She laughs at the movement. If she were him, she wouldn't want to get up and face Derek again after last time. She pulls on a shirt and bottoms before making her way to the door. She's greeted to Derek's large grin.

"Someone got laid?" She muses, watching Derek come in. He does a funny little dance and she leans against the closed down, watching him, amused.

"Someone got laid, indeed." He says after his little dance. She shakes her head with a chuckle.

"Well, Derek, as happy as I am for you, I still have a chance to get laid again, so if we could discuss this later…." She trails off, her hand moving back to the door.

He looks disgusted for a moment, but it doesn't last too long, his joy over masking the disgust. "It's all good. I had my fun, you have yours. All in all, it's a good night!"

She laughs and reopens the door. He smiles and wraps his arms around her, surprising. She wraps an arm around his neck. "Good night, Derek." She says softly.

"Thank you." He says before he pulls away, giving her the same 100 watt smile.

She rolls her eyes at him, but smiles nonetheless. "Good night, Derek."

She lets him out before turning back to the bed room to see Spencer, standing there in his pants. He's pulling on his shirt and she frowns.

"And where do you think you're going, _chico_?" She asks, stepping up to him.

"It's almost four, I should be-" He doesn't finish his sentence, his mouth moves against his neck, stopping any suggestion of leaving.


	12. Lightening & Unfinished Buisness

**Author's Notes: 2 papers down, 2 to go! Victimology paper, you're next. And since I finished my Creative Writing paper, You guys get another chapter. Number 13 is done too, because...I procrastinate, but... once I finish my paper on the Amber Alert system, you can have that one too! Thank you for the reviews, I love you guys!**

* * *

><p>The next month passes by quickly. They're in Florida for the Jacob and Sarah Jean execution. It's a hard case and when Derek and Elle return from Riley's, the mood is somber. They stay in Florida for an extra couple of days, Gideon goes to Riley's performance and Elle goes to the bar.<p>

"You okay?" Derek asks, joining her. She shakes her head. She still doesn't understand how someone could give up their innocence - their life - for someone else like that. She understands that he was her son and she didn't want him to know about all the bad things that had happened, but he was a teenager, he had probably heard about the case. He could have understood why she gave him up, why she was forced by Jacob to do such horrible things.

"She deserved to live." She says.

Derek nods, sitting next to her. "She wanted to the right thing by her son."

Elle looks at him. "You think that was the right thing?"

Derek shrugs before ordering a coke, ignoring the bartender's look. "I think she thought it was the right thing for her son. She didn't want him to know about the bad things she did. I'd do it for my mom and sisters. My mom would do it for me."

She snorts. "My mom wouldn't. She'd want me to know exactly what she did for me."

She shouldn't have shared that. She was drunk. She sips her drink, ignoring the look he's giving her. He gets his drink, wraps his hands around it.

"Were you two not close?"

"No. we were all each other had after my dad died. She just… liked to make sure I knew it. She wanted me to know everything she gave up for la hija. I think she resented my dad for dying."

"I'm sorry."

She shrugs and orders another drink. She sees Derek shakes his head at the bartender, ordering him not to give her another. She lets him get away with this time. She know she's had too much already.

"You know she was a drunk? Started after my dad died. Une alcohólica."

"Tequila?"

She smirks. "You remember, I'm surprised, papi. Let's get out of here."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 12**

He sits at the table, watching her.

"You can go." She says, falling back on the bed. "I'm not that…drunk."

He chuckles. "Sure you aren't."

She rolls her eyes, laying against the uncomfortable hotel comforter, looking at him. "Where does your family live? Illinois, right?"

"Chicago. Do you have family here?"

She cocks an eyebrow. "What, because I'm Cuban, I have family in Florida?"

He stares at her and she rolls her eyes again. "I have an aunt in Miami. Damn stereotypes."

He chuckles. "I didn't even know you were Cuban, Elle."

She frowns. "Oh. I am. Cuban-Italian New Yorker."

"With a heart of gold." He teases.

"Bite me."

He laughs. "Go to bed."

She sighs. "You'd really do that for your mom? Give up your life so she didn't have hurt?"

He gets serious. "Yeah. It's… some of the reason I never told anyone about….you know. I didn't want her to feel that pain. To think it…in any way her fault."

She watches him, eyes drooping. She's getting tired, but she doesn't want to fall asleep. "I'm sorry that happened to you, Derek."

He doesn't answer her before her eyes close.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 12**

After her drunken share-fest, She and Derek get closer. She finds herself going to his house more often. She even begins to warm up to his chubby little dog. He's actually got a pretty good personality which almost makes up for the fact that he's incredibly ugly. So it's not strange when she shows up late after the Max Ryan case.

He smiles and lets her in. "What's up?"

"I can't stop thinking about how easy it was for all of us to get there, you know?"

"To the case?"

"Yeah. Like nothing else matters. We're just… profilers, 24/7."

He frowns. "You don't like the job?"

"No, no.. I love the job. I love what we're doing, but…" She flops down on the couch, petting Clooney in between the ears.

Derek watches her. "I just figured you were with Spencer."

She had been, but she wasn't going to tell Derek that. Spencer had actually gone back to his house and then asked JJ to pick him up so it wasn't suspicious. But that wasn't the point. It was that fact that maybe one day she would want more than just a casual sexual relationship and didn't want it to be so easy to just walk away. Hell, she was getting to that point already. She was….getting older. She makes a face at the thought. Who was she kidding? She wasn't 25 years old anymore and this case had hit a nerve with Ryan losing everything because he couldn't be more than just a profiler.

He sits next to her, moving his arm behind the couch. "I think that we're all doing this for a reason, you know? Ryan had the Keystone Killer and he'd never be able to move on until he found him. Maybe now that he has, he can reunite with his kids and…" He shrugs.

"And what's your reason?"

He gives her a look and she nods. "Right. I just… want more than this job, I guess."

He nods. "I can understand that."

"Can you?" She asks. "You want a family and kids?"

"You do?" He asks and she nods, slowly.

"Well… not right now, but… I want it to be a possibility. I mean, Hotch does it, why can't I?"

He chuckles. "I just don't see you as the mommy type."

She frowns. "I'd be a good mom, you ass."

He chuckles and she smiles at his smile. "Of course, you would. I just didn't think that'd be your thing."

"You'd be a good dad, I think."

He raises his eyebrows, smile still on his lips. "You think?"

"C'mon. The way you baby Reid. You've tackled him "to keep him safe" how many times this year?"

He rolls her eyes, playfully. She smirks up at him before leaning into his touch a little.

"And you tried to get me not to sleep with him, because you thought I was going to hurt him."

"I still think it's a bad idea, but Spencer does seem a little more confident."

She chuckles. "He is. See, I'm just good at what I do. You should give it a try."

He looks down at her, looking unimpressed. He's grown used to her flirty nature, even beginning to flirt with her more. The tension gone since she shared more about her past. Her drunk mother was nothing like his abuse, but it was something that made her past less than perfect. Still, this was the first time that she had touched him more than briefly without him moving away or being tense. He felt relaxed behind her as she leaned into his side. She reaches out to rub the dog's head again. This was nice. Sitting around doing nothing with Derek and his dog. It felt normal, like a moment she wanted to have and thought she might never get to with the job they worked. She really needed to stop thinking about Max Ryan.

"Do you want to stay for dinner?" Derek asks and she nods, silently.

He pulls away from her to move to the kitchen to start cooking. They continue to talk about case-related things while he makes the food. Once he's done, they move into his dining room. She's surprised to find out Derek is actually an amazing cook. He makes a delicious dinner and when she asks, he gives his signature smile.

"I might have been a Momma's boy when I was younger. I spent a lot of time in the kitchen until I was about 13."

"So you know how to make more things like this?" She asks, around a bite of chicken.

He chuckles. "Woman, you've never had soul food? I make a mean Chicken fried Steak and my momma tells me that I make the best Sweet Potato Pie."

"There's pie?" She looks hopeful and he laughs again.

"Not this time. I didn't expect you to like pie."

"Because I'm Cuban?" She jokes and he rolls his eyes.

"Just eat your food." He sits down with his own plate.

"You better not give that to the dog." She warns as he begins to tear off a piece for Clooney. He glares and gives the awaiting bulldog a piece.


	13. The Tribe

She has dinner with Derek for the next three days. It's better than Chinese take-out with Spencer or pizza that comes no where close to her hometown's. She sits on the couch, stuffed after another good meal.

"We have to go for a walk or I'm going to get fat." She says and he laughs before sitting next to her. She looks over at the dog who's licking his chops.

"Clooney's not fat. So don't even say it." He murmurs as he flips through tv channels.

She snorts, although she had been thinking about saying something along those lines. She leans against him. "I think we're hanging out too much. You're reading my thoughts."

He chuckles. "I'm just good at my job."

She rolls at his eyes. "We're mind readers now?"

He shrugs, settling on a movie channel, before his arm moves to the back of the couch and he relaxes against her. "I think we sometimes have to pretend that we are."

She thinks about his words before shrugging, turning her attention back to the TV. It's a football movie. She rolls her eyes at his choice.

"What sport did you play?" She asks, although she assumes it was football. Morgan was as tall as Spencer, but he just didn't fit that type.

"Football. Quarterback mostly, but I played cornerback too. I got my scholarship for my arm though."

"You were good?"

He smirks down at her. "I was… but you have to understand that when I went to Northwestern, they weren't known for being good. It wasn't until after I busted my knee, we got a new coach and a great defense and we started kicking ass. Actually, after I was off the team, we made it to the Rose Bowl. We lost to USC, sure, but… It was a great year."

"And you didn't get to be a part of it."

He makes a face. "My friends did and I mean…" He shrugs, but she sees the pain in his eyes. His whole life could have been different if he could have played in those games. Maybe his abuse could have meant something. He would have maybe made it to the big leagues or something. They don't speak and he changes the channel from the football movie.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 13**

They're walking Clooney, silently. Derek's still in his thoughts and she doesn't know what to say. Should she apologize for bringing it up? Hell, she wasn't that type of person. He shouldn't still be thinking about that sort of stuff anyway. He was a BAU profiler, kicking in doors and saving lives. That was better than tossing around a ball anyways. She couldn't tell him that. But why the hell not? Maybe they were spending too much time together. She was getting soft around him. She watches as he bends over to pet the dog who has decided it was time to take a break right in the middle of the walk.

"I'm not jealous of what they accomplished." He says, quietly, as he stands. "I just think about where I'd be if I was one of them."

"You'd rather be a football player than a profiler?"

"No. Of course not." He answers quickly. "I just wonder if it would be easier. Like you said, I want a possibility of something more."

"And like you said…We have a reason that we do this job. Does that reason matter more than any possibility of something else?"

He thinks about it before shrugging. The dog decides it's time to continue to walk and Derek follows, leaving the question unanswered. She follows the two, wondering how they had gotten in so many deep conversations lately. It was strange and she didn't like it. She didn't want to have these deep moments with Derek. She didn't want to have these type of moments with anyone right now. It was too personal, it gave the other too much responsibility with each answer heard. They were close, of course. She risked her life everyday with these people, but how close was too close? She almost felt closer to Derek than she did Reid - and she was sleeping with Reid! This was much more….intimate. She looks up at him and smiles when he looks back at her, making sure she's keeping up - not that it's hard to with the waddling dog leading the way. Still, their eyes meet and she curses herself. Shit, she was starting to feel something for the black man.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 13**

There were two options to this little problem: Ignore it, which was the best thing to do. Anything you ignored, eventually went away. Or… She could do something about it. Usually, she'd just screw the guy, but in this case that wasn't going to happen. So the best thing to do was probably just ignore it. She stuffs her hands into her pockets as they reach his house again. He lets the dog in between turning to her.

"You want to watch a movie or something?" He asks, opening the door open for her.

She shakes her head. "I have to get back home. Lots of paperwork to do before…"

He rolls his eyes. "No one actually does paperwork at home, Elle. C'mon. No Sports movies."

She chuckles. "Aww, no "Field of Dreams"?"

"That is a good movie!"

She rolls her eyes as he raises his eyebrows, inviting her in. Shit. He wasn't going to make this easy to ignore. She steps up towards him, walking inside the house. She hears the door click closed before she realizes that it's a mistake to stay. She needs to get home. She turns and almost bumps into the man. He chuckles before he looks at her.

"You okay?"

Fuck.

She steps up to him, placing her hands on his chest, leaning up just enough to press her lips against his. He pulls back instantly, frowning.

"Elle…"

She leans up and kisses him again. This time he responds to the kiss, his arm moving around her waist. She's surprised at the movement and her hand moves down his chest. He tenses and pulls back, shaking his head.

"I can't do this, Elle."

She nods. She had done something. She had been rejected. That one way to deal with it. She nods moving to the front door, when he grabs her arm.

"Maybe we could go slow." He says, softly.

She raises an eyebrow. She's not a slow type of girl. Sure, she had played the game a little with Reid, but the boy hadn't even been able to talk to her the first time they meant. Derek clears his throat.

"I mean… You know, not that I expect.. Or want… not I don't want…"

She laughs at his stammer. "You sound like Reid."

He glares. "I'm just saying as long as you don't expect a relationship."

"Of course not, Derek." She says, although she wonders what exactly had she expected when she kissed him. To express undying love? This was Derek Morgan, a known playboy who wasn't going to settle down with her just because she knew his secrets. Hell, she didn't even want that. Not yet, anyway. And not with someone like Derek. If she was going to settle down, it would have to be someone who her dad would approve of. And Derek Morgan probably wouldn't meet that standard. Hell, Neither would Reid. Her dad would be impressed by Reid's intelligence, but the man would be too weak to keep his 'peanut' safe and Derek… She frowns. Why wouldn't her dad like Derek? He was a player…but he was a good man who took care of the people he loved too. He was strong enough and loyal to the people he cared for. Hell, he hadn't even wanted to take advantage of her when she was throwing himself at her. Damn it, her dad would probably love Derek.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 13**

She takes a few days to herself, trying to push away any feelings she has for the man, even though she's agreed to go slow with him. It's not a relationship. She's helping him, she tells herself. She's helping him push past the love/sex barrier without really having the love part. It doesn't make much sense to her. Still, they share small smiles at the office and she feels thirteen for the first time in years. It's ridiculous and stupid. It's just going to a physical relationship that's going to take a little extra time to get to the physical part. Feelings were dumb. She's thankful when the next case comes in, but it only takes up a few days before they're back at home. Derek invites her to dinner, which she can't refuse. He moves around the kitchen as she spends time with the dog, who lays his head on her leg, begging to be touched. She makes a face, knowing she'll now be covered in drool. The dog snorts as she rubs his head. It really is ugly and gross, but he's still growing on her. Derek brings plates to the table a little later and she stands, wiping off her pants, making a face. He grins at her.

"Sorry. Clooney's a bit of a dribbler." He says, handing her a couple napkins

"Dribble? That's what you call this. You're paying for my dry cleaner bill, Derek."

He laughs before sitting down. He waits to start eating until she sits down, still wiping her pants. "I'm serious. This is the second pair of pants he's drooled all over."  
>"He can't help it, it's how his face is. Isn't it, boy?" He pets the dog, who had wandered over for some dinner scraps. Elle just rolls her eyes before Morgan turns his attention back to her.<p>

"So you really want to do this?" He asks.

She should say no. "Yeah."


	14. A Real Rain Pt 1

"Stop."

Elle pulls back, sitting on the man's legs. She tries to not let her frustration show as he leans back against the couch. She breathes out slow, her fingers brushing through her hair before resting on his shoulders.

"You're not hurting me. I'm not hurting you. Right?"

He nods and she leans forward again, but his hands push her back. "But… I…. This isn't right."

"Derek." She growls, her frustration peeking through. It had been a week and a half of kissing. She really felt thirteen again now - hell, she got more action at thirteen!

He shifts. "I'm sorry."

She shakes her head. "It's okay. I'm sorry….Do you want me to move?"

His arm snakes around her and she smirks. "I'll take that as a no."

He leans in and kisses her, tentatively. His touches are always soft, hesitant. She wonders if he's this soft with others or if it's just because it's her and he doesn't want to hurt her. She wishes he'd be rougher. It all feels so... romantic. Her hands stay on his shoulders as she moves a little closer towards him. He tenses a little, but doesn't pull away from the kiss. It's good, but it's not really progress; they've gotten here before. Her hands move to his neck as she presses into him more, wanting to deepen the kiss or grind her hips down or something, but she waits, letting him make the next deciding move. She has learned the hard way that anytime she takes too much control, he freaks out. She almost moans when his hands move up her hand, under her shirt. He pauses before he gets far enough to get to the strap of her bra, but his hand against her skin is enough to get a reaction. She presses into him.

"Derek." She breathes against his lips as he breaks the kiss. His fingertips run back down her back before he stops and pulls his hand away. She leans into kiss him again, but he pulls back. She fights the urge to pout.

"I have to take Clooney for his walk. Do you want to come?"

She stares at him. He can't be serious. He raises his eyebrows in question and she bites her tongue to not growl at him.  
>"I think I should be heading home. Next time." She says as she moves off his lap. If she didn't something more than a few kisses from him soon, she was going to smack him. Okay, she wasn't going to smack him, that wouldn't be helpful, but she was sure imagining it. He nods and walks her out with the dog on the leash.<p>

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 14**

"Hey." Spencer says before she presses into him and kisses him. He's surprised by the suddenness but doesn't fight it, closing the door behind her as he tries to keep up with her aggressiveness. He tugs up her shirt, stalling her fingers on his buttons momentarily.

"Bad day?" He asks between kisses. She doesn't answer, there's no need to. She breaks the contact to undo his belt and looks up at him as she pulls the leather from the buckle. He's almost smirking, which is still a little strange to see from the man who was so unsure the first time they had been in this situation.

"Someone turn you down?"

She growls and kisses him again and she feels the smirk on his lips as he pulls back. She bites at his bottom lip to get him to stop. She knew she could wipe the smirk right off his face by telling him who had been the one that didn't give her what she wanted, but she'd never tell him that. Even though Spencer and she agreed that they could see other people, it just felt weird sharing the fact that she was trying to get with his best friend. The thought makes her frown for a moment. It made her sound like a slut. She groans as Spencer's lips move expertly against her neck and she remembers her previous task of getting rid of the younger man's pants. He's the one to groan next when her hand slips inside his boxer briefs after she succeeds in her task.

"You should get rejected more often." He mutters against her neck as he tugs her towards his bedroom.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 14**

New York is exactly what she needs after another two weeks of soft touches and tentative kisses. She's glad when the next case comes in from her hometown. She's shocked to learn that Spencer's never been either. She wants to roll her eyes when JJ offers to show him around, but she fights it seeing the spark in the man's eyes after the words. She smirks, noting that the genius still had a crush on the blond liaison. She'd tease him about that later. Hotch gets them down to business and the next couple of days are all work.  
>After the case is solved though, she makes plans to see the city. It's been years since she's been home. Hell, for the longest time, Seattle had been home. She had left New York when she was in her mid twenties, unable to be around her mother any longer. Once she had started to gain success for herself in her father's field nonetheless, her relationship with her mother became more strained. The alcohol didn't help things either. So when the transfer to Seattle came along, she took it without looking back. It took her a few years to adjust. She transferred departments a lot before settling on Sex Crimes, where she excelled.<p>

"You okay?" Derek asks behind her and she jumps out of her thoughts. She turns away from railing of the second story of the hotel, to look back at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She gives him a smile to make sure he believes it.

He nods and leans against the railing. "I was thinking of staying a few extra days, spend some time in the city. You want to join me?"

It's a casual invitation, but with all the softness that has surrounded them, it seems like more to her. She wants to deny him before she gets too deep. She knows how this story ends and starting to feel real things for the man is not part of the script. She shrugs. "I was going to stay anyway."

He gives her his famous smile. "Good. Good. I'll tell JJ that we're going to keep our rooms then."

"I mean, I… I have things I need to do here before I go home." She says, trying to make it clear that she had a reason to stay other than him.

He nods before he shrugs. "That's cool. I can entertain myself while you do those things."

She nods. It seems like he was going to stay regardless. "Alright."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle || Chapter 14**

"So you're going to stay here with Derek?" Spencer asks, twirling one of the hotel pens.

She rolls her eyes. "I was going to stay regardless. Derek decided he wanted to stay too."

Spencer looks at her. "Interesting."

She wants to say something smart, but she didn't want to give herself away if Spencer hadn't figured out there was something between Elle and Derek.

"So you two aren't going to do anything together?"

"Nope." She says before smirking. "Maybe you should stay. I'm sure Derek could show you around and I'd keep you company at night." She winks and he shakes his head, smile and blush both on his face.

"I have an article to write."

She rolls her eyes. The man was always writing articles. "Math, this time?"

"Chemistry." He corrects.

"Nerd." She teases.

"At least I don't have a crush on Derek Morgan." He teases right back and she looks at him, surprised. It's a rare occasion when Spencer will actually play her games.

"I do not!"

He grins, her answer obviously causing him more certainty. "You do too! You've been giving him these strange looks all week. At first I thought you were angry at him, but then you tend to linger and the glare fades into something else."

She glares. "Shut up or I'll make sure JJ knows that a certain genius is still madly in love with her."

His eyes widen as he flushes deep. She smirks when he tucks his chin into his chest, forfeiting the game. She smirks and moves from the bed to where he sits. She raises his chin as she moves into his lap.

"I won't tell if you won't tell. Deal?"

He thinks about it for a moment. "So I was right?" He asks.

"You're not supposed to profile team members."

"You too."

She shrugs. "Yeah, but I break the rules, Wonderboy. So whaddya' say?"

His hands move to her hips, over her sides. "I can break the rules too, you know?" He says, ignoring her question.

She smirks. "Yes, you can." She murmurs in Spanish, causing his eyes to flash. Spencer always enjoys when she speaks Spanish. It's all he needs to push him to kiss her, conversation lost from then on. She knows Spencer will keep her secret. They've been able to hide the fact that they've been physically involved for months now. Surely, he would be able to keep this one if he was able to keep something like that.


	15. A Real Rain Pt 2

Author's notes: Sorry for the lack of updates lately. It's nearing Finals week and I had a lot to do. Should be leveling out now. Thanks to all that are reading. Please Review! I love hearing from everyone. (Don't be scared to tell me if something's not working either! Criticism is a writer's best friend). Italics means it's Spanish. I'm not bi-lingual and don't expect y'all to be so... it's the easiest way to do it. Madre - mother in spanish.

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><p>Elle stares up at the building she had grown up in. It had been five years since she was home. Maybe she should just make it six. No, she could hear her mother's voice in her head., yelling at her in Spanish. She breathed out and made her way into the building.<p>

She wondered if she should knock or just use her key. It wasn't her house anymore, but she had spent 23 years in it. She knocks, it's a sign of respect. The door opens to an older version of herself. Her dad had always called her a mini version of Maria. The woman stares at her.

"Gabrielle."

Elle rolls her eyes. "Elle, madre. It's just Elle now."

Maria blows raspberries as she moves inside to the couch. She grabs her pack of cigarettes and pulls one out. "Your father and I named you Gabrielle Marie Greenaway. You will always be Gabrielle Marie Greeanaway. _Understand_?" She lights the cigarette and Elle can tell she's been drinking. She moves to the couch.

"Dad called me Elle all the time."

Maria blows raspberries again and Elle takes the cigarette out of her hand to take a drag. She makes a face.

"You were supposed to stop smoking menthols. Your doctor-"

"My doctor is an idiot." Maria seethes in Spanish as Elle shakes her head, continuing to smoke. There's no use arguing with the woman. Maria eventually snatches it back.

"You're not supposed to smoke._ Your father would kill me if he knew I let you smoke. God rest his sou_l." She makes the sign of the cross before she takes another drag.

Elle picks at a burn on the couch, not saying anything.

"Are you going to St. Joseph's while you're in town?" Her mother asks as she stubs out the cigaratte and stares at her.

"I… of course, Madre." She lies. She hasn't been to church in 10 years.

_"Don't lie to me, Gabrielle_." Marie glares.

Elle returns the look. "I'm not!"

Maria snorts before she gets up, moving to her freezer. "I'm going to tell Father Frank to expect you then."

Elle swears under her breath. "Okay, madre. Well, I was going to go see Louis."

Maria turns around and she's tense. Louis was Elle's father's partner. He had been there for Elle after her dad had died and they were still close. Maria hated him. She blamed him. She mutters a few curse words as she pours herself a glass of vodka. Elle stands.

"I don't want to fight, madre," She starts and Maria interrupts.

"Yeah, well… you should get going then."

Her phone buzzes and she sighs when she sees it's Derek. She tells her mother goodbye before picking up the phone once she's in the hallway. She's not really in the mood to deal with the man, but she answers anyway.

"Greenaway."

"Hey, where are you?"

"Brooklyn."

"Ohh."

She laughs. "What? A big guy like you is scared of Brooklyn?"

"No." He laughs. "I was wondering if you want to have lunch."

She looks at her watch. "Yeah, yeah. Sounds good. I'll meet you at the hotel."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

"Have you got the things you needed to do done?" Morgan asks after he orders his drink.

"I visited my mother today." She says, ordering a soda, needing something stronger.

Derek nods, silently. "How'd that go?"

"As expected. Are you religious?"

He raises an eyebrow. "Why?"

She sighs. "I have to go to church tomorrow."

"You have to?"

"My mother's probably already called Father Frank, so yes. I have to go."

He laughs. "You're Catholic?"

"I'm agnostic. My last confession was 14 years ago."

Derek whistles. "The sins you have committed since. Father Frank's going to be shocked."

She laughs. "I don't think so. I've always been a trouble maker." She winks and Derek smirks.

"Where are you headed to next?"

"76th Precinct." She pauses. "Would you like to come? I'm going to see my godfather."

He shrugs. "Sure. I got a lot of questions I could ask.

She rolls her eyes, but the smile stays.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

"Well if it isn't my favorite little girl." Louis calls out as soon as they enter the precinct. Elle shakes her head.

"I'm not little, Louis."

He shakes his head and wraps his arms around her regardless. She laughs as he picks her up on the ground. "Louis!"

He sets her down before turning his attention to Derek. She sees him size up the other black man and holds her breath. "What's your name, boy?"

Elle rolls her eyes. The man's daughter, a few years younger than she, had recently gotten married and had been trying to get her to settle down now. When they talked months ago, she had mentioned that there were a few hot guys at her new job and he had been thrilled at the possibility she might find someone.

"Derek Morgan, sir." He pushes his hand out for the man to take and Louis shakes his hand. She hides her smile as Louis stretches his hand out a little after the interaction. She imagines Louis had tried to show his strength and Morgan had beat him at it. At least, that's what she hopes. Louis needed to be brought down a level or so.

"Are you keeping my little girl here safe? I see you have the muscles but can you back it up?"

Elle groans at the man's comment. "Louis, he's not my-"

"I have a black belt in Judo and -"

"We work together, Louis. He's BAU." Elle interrupts Derek. He doesn't need to be playing into the man's game.

"The BAU, huh? Maybe this one will be able to get through that tough exterior." He says, before turning back to Derek. "She's really a big softie."

Derek raises an eyebrow, amused. "She is, huh?"

"Oh yeah. Very gooey. When she was - "

"Alright, well, we're going to get going then." Elle interrupts again and Louis laughs.

"Oh, I'm just teasing you, Gab-"

She clears her throat, glaring at him and Louis shakes his head.

"Elle." He corrects.

Elle looks at Derek who looks at them curiously. Luckily, Louis moves on and after a conversation about the BAU and how she's been, Derek and Elle are on their way.

"so Gabby." Derek starts and Elle turns around quickly.

"I swear to god, if you tell anyone, I will kick your ass."

He laughs. "It's cute. I never thought of you as Gabrielle."

She glares. "Derek, if you ever-"

"I won't tell." He smirks. "Promise, Gabby."

She smacks him before turning around and continued to walk.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

There's a knock and she opens the door. She leans against the door.

"Here to tease me some-" Her last words are mumbled against his lips as he pushes his way in.

Her hands move around his wrists as his hands rest gently against her neck. She pulls back.

"What-" His kiss interrupts her again and she pulls him back to the bed. If he's ready, she's not going to fight with him. She continues to tug him closer to the bed, only pausing when her calves meet the mattress. She backs up enough to move under his shirt. He tugs back pulling up the shirt off before working on hers. She groans before pushing him away.

"Derek, what's got into you?" She groans as his lips move to her neck before she pushes him back again. "Derek, stop."

He pulls back looking confused and she can't believe she's doing this. "You're not ready." She murmurs.

He frowns. "I want you. We've been doing this for weeks now."

Her hands move over his chest, trying to stop her heart from racing. "We've barely been making out these last few weeks, you can't just jump into this. I don't want you to…"

He kisses her again and her arms wrap around his neck. His hands move up under her shirt, but he's softer again, slow. It's more the pace she's gotten used to with him and it's nice. His hands move over the material of her bra. She pulls away, moving to sit on the bed, looking up at him, wondering if he'll follow her. She doesn't want anything major to happen tonight, but couldn't they have just a little fun? If he was up for it. He kneels on the bed and she reaches for him, pulling him on top of her. She can't believe she pushed him away when he began to treat her like the other women in his life. She presses up into his hands as they move under her shirt again, his lips on her neck. She was getting too deep. She wanted to be different. She wanted them to stay slow. Fuck, what was wrong with her? She didn't want him to regret his choice, didn't want him to get hurt. She was starting to really feel things for the man. She had to put some distance in between them or something. She couldn't let herself fall for Derek Morgan. He pulls up her shirt, waiting to her to rise up to get it off of her. She sits up a little, letting him get rid of her shirt. Or she could put distance in between them later.


	16. Somebody's Watching Pt 1

**Author's Notes: Please Read the first Author Note before continuing to the story if you're a youngin'**

**WARNING! **This chapter could contain** M- Rated **stuff. It's…kinda necessary to the story, so… If you don't want to read that part, please skip the section marked Rated M. (or you could read that part to the line "Let me" and then skip over the rest of it. Which ever you prefer.) This story is still rated T for now. And will stay that way. The M-rated part is this story isn't TOO detailed, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. More detailed rated M stuff (may some come up) will be watered down for this story and if I feel it's needed (or you guys want it) then I'll add it in a one shot type of thing (in example, the Derailed one shot for Chapter Six, which you can find on my story list or the community thing. It should be in there with the first version one shots.

**NEW STORY! **Since we have made it to the episode of Somebody's Watching, the next story in this story will be up soon, Reid's section! Yey! It is not up yet, but will be up before the next installment of this story. I still don't know what it's called, but I'll be sure to tell you on the next chapter. Sign up for an Author Alert if you'd like to know before or you could leave name suggestions in Reviews! Thanks everyone who reads the story. Enjoy.

* * *

><p>Elle taps her pen against the papers. She should be concentrating on her work, but her mind is clouded. In New York, Derek had come over and tried to get with her. She had slowed them down and the night had ended with a heavy make out session and progress to getting to the final act, but nothing more than 3rd base. Did anyone even use that analogy anymore? She wondered if she hadn't said something if they would have 'hit the home run'. Why had she stopped them? She knew why. She was developing feelings for Derek, more than before. He was a nice guy with a hot body. He was sweet and he had moments where he seemed like he'd be a good boyfriend. Was she looking for that? She liked what she had with Reid. Sex, no strings, but if she was being honest with herself, she enjoyed the genius' friendship more. Was she growing out of the sex without responsibility phase? She was 34 years old. Maybe it was time to want something more. Her eyes linger over to the man next to her. Had she stopped him because he was treating her like all the other women in his life? Was she trying to keep the image that she was more than just a one night fling alive? Derek had told her not to expect a relationship. They were just working on him being able to have sex with someone that he 'cared for'. Most of the time, he could barely touch her, feeling like he was doing something bad to her and then that night in New York, he had been all over her. How did that make any sense? What changed? Did he stop feeling that family bond for her? Did something change when he saw her with Louis? She wanted to ask, but asking meant a conversation about them and they couldn't do that. Ever since New York, he had been back to being alittle distant, treating her like everyone else. Which was good, she guessed. He was hiding it from everyone. It was necessary, wasn't it? He wasn't acting any different than before, but after New York, everything felt different. But still, they had agreed that this was just sex without strings, an experiment to get Derek to let go of his abuse issues. She couldn't have a talk with him about what they were and what had changed (if anything.)That was like breaking the code. She couldn't break the code. Hell, she should have just put distance between them like she said she was going to. Instead, she had spent every night at his house for the last week. She was an idiot. A big, big idiot.<p>

**(Rated M) Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle (Rated M)**

She sighs when she feels his lips against her shoulder. She lays on her stomach, half-naked in his bed, blanket covering the black panties she still has on. It's been three weeks since New York and she's still visiting the man way too often, but with all the extra time spent, they have made progress. Her thoughts are pushed again when she feels his hand run up her back, meeting where his lips had brushed against the skin, before it runs over her side. The soft touches remind her a little of Reid when he studies her during the times there's foreplay. It amuses her how attentive the genius can be, experimenting with things he has read about. This isn't that though. Derek isn't studying her or trying to figure out what makes her feel good. She doesn't know what he's doing, although it does feel good. His hand brushes her hair to the side, exposing the back of her neck and she shivers when he presses his lips against the area. She turns her head to look at him, still a little sleepy.

"What time is it?" She asks.

"Early." He says and she sighs again, when his fingertips brush down her spine. "Did I wake you?"

She gives a small shake of her head as she watches him. The softness is back and she wonders if this is more than just sex. It's too gentle. It's sweet. He kisses her shoulder again and she smiles.

"What are you doing up?" She asks before he turns to lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling.

"Can't sleep."

She licks her lips, wondering if she should ask if he wanted to talk about it. She didn't know if she should. She decides it's better to say something than be silent. "Why not?" She asks, softly.

He gives a bit of a shrug, barely noticeable in the darkness. She wonders if it has anything to do with the caresses. If it has anything to do with her. She moves closer to him and rests her head on his shoulder, snuggling up against his side. You can talk to me, you know?" She says, hoping that maybe they could actually talk about things. Maybe, about them? They still hadn't talked about anything.

He looks down at her before kissing her. She moves more on top, matching his intensity and forgetting the conversation, but it doesn't last long. He rolls them so her back is against the mattress and she wants to groan. His need to control the situation is evident and she wonders if that was ever going to go away. He kisses down over her jaw and down her neck to her chest. She pushes him back, trying to roll them back over, wanting to be on top for once, but he grabs her hips, pushing her back against the mattress.

"Derek." He kisses her neck again and she pushes him back. "Derek."

He pulls back, looking at her. "What?"

"Do you trust me?"

He looks confused. "Yeah."

"Then?"

"Then what?"

"Let me."

He frowns, but lays back on his back. Everything so far had been about him touching her or him doing things to please her. She hadn't expected him to be so giving, but she knew it had to be more than that. His abuser had done things to him and he was still protecting himself from that. She straddles his hips and looks up at him, his eyes watching her. She leans over and kisses his chest continuing to kiss down his stomach. She sees him tense and looks up at him.

"I'm not going to hurt you."

The words don't seem to help and she moves to her side, leaning up to kiss him. He responds to the kiss, so she deepens it slightly as her hand travels down his torso. He pulls away from the kiss when her hand reaches inside his boxer briefs.

"Elle."

"It's okay." She murmurs, pressing her lips against his neck. "It's okay."

He turns his head to kiss her again as her hand strokes him. She can feel him tensed as he continues to respond to the kiss and she wonders if he's fighting with himself.

"Do you want me to stop?" She asks, lips brushing against his as she speaks. "Are you okay?"

He nods and she stills her hand, unsure which one he's saying yes to. He pushes his hips up against her hand once she stops and she smirks against his lips, starting her rhythm again.

"I could use my mouth, if you..."

That causes him to tense immediately, his eyes shut forcefully and she shakes her head. "I don't have to. Whatever you want." She reassures him. "Whatever you want."

His hand wraps around her wrist and she watches as his eyes open slowly, locking with hers. It's unnerving as he doesn't break the glance, but she keeps the eye contact until he comes. She breaks the stare when he moves his hand. She moves to the bathroom to wash her hands and grab something to clean up.

"I can do it." He says, taking the washcloth from her. She notices that he doesn't look at her as he sits up.

**(Back to T!) Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

A phone vibrates, waking her up. Derek reaches over her.

"Morgan." He answers, roughly.

"It's Saturday….No… Yeah, I'll be there."

He hangs up and rubs his eyes. "Case in California."

Her phone vibrates and he smirks before she reaches to grab it.

"Greenaway."

"Gideon called from L.A. Seems he and Reid got pulled into a case. He called us down. Wheels up in an hour." JJ says

"Alright. I'll be there."

She hangs up before looking back at Derek. "This sucks."

He shrugs, tugging on a shirt. "You have your go bag?"

"In the car."

"Good, you won't have to go home."

She watches as he leaves the room. What the hell? He was back to being distant. The switch had been turned and they weren't even in the company of the team yet.


	17. Somebody's Watching Pt 2

Author's Notes: Alright. The GEEKYWOOD! Part is now up in this here series. It is called One Small Step and will explain Reid's story! Yey! Go check it out!

One of my lovely reviewers brought up a good question, This story is told from the side of Elle and will follow her story after she leaves the BAU team, so the question I have for you guys, is do you want Morgan's side of the story too? Or are you good? We'll see Morgan still in One Small Step (and the following stories, if I decide to write Emily's part when she joins the team, or if not in JJ's at the episode of Jones. Thumbs up!)

Enjoy!

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><p>She can tell by the look on Spencer's face when the rest of the team arrives that something has happened more than just a case. When He follows her to get some coffee, she turns to him and stares him down. "Spill."<p>

His eyes widen before he grins. He's unable to keep quiet. "I met a girl." He says, rushed and quietly, but his voice is octaves higher. He sounds a bit like a whispering chipmunk.

She smirks as she stirs her coffee. It's times like this, she remembers how sheltered the boy actually was. He had shared with her that he had never dated in high school and rarely in college. "Oh yeah?" She says, smiling up at him. He looks so young and happy.

"At an art gallery. She's beautiful. Gideon made us leave early, but I went back and…" She can tell by the way he stops in mid-sentence and smiles that something happened after he went back. The added blush as his mind works though whatever it is gives her an idea of what.

"And…." She urges.

He straightens and turns away as an officer passes before he turns back. "Okay, well.. I went back and she was leaving, but she asked me to come with her."

She nods, sipping her drink. "And…"

"And well…" He blushes again. "You know."

She laughs. "You had sex?" She's sure that that's not it. She assumes that he got a kiss or something innocent and sweet. He wasn't the type that did the one night stand type of thing. It had taken him months for her to relax around him.

His eyes widen. "Elle!" His cheeks redden even more than she thought was humanly possible.

"Well, did you?"

He turns back to his coffee, trying to hide the smirk and her eyes widen. "Did you? Oh my god, Spencer!"

He sips his coffee, holding the cup close to his face as his eyes dance and the smile on his face grows even larger. "You ever do something you know you should regret, but if you hadn't done it, you would have regretted it more?" He asks and she stares at him still in shock. The words aren't his. She knows it. He doesn't talk like that. She chuckles, shaking her head before she chuckles again, speechless.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle sits across from Derek and JJ. The three were at lunch, the parents deciding not to come with the kids. Derek was still acting distance and she wanted to call him out on it, but she couldn't not with JJ here.

"Spence seems a little starstruck." JJ says with a smile and Elle can tell it's her way of trying to get the conversation started.

"He was checking her out on set, but then again, a room full of hotties in bikinis - whose eyes wouldn't be wandering?" He gives his player grin and Elle wants to roll her eyes.

"He likes her, I think." She puts in his two cents. "They met at an art gallery last night. They hit off pretty well, I guess."

JJ's eyes flash and Elle wonders why the genius hadn't told JJ about that. The two were close. She could only assume it was because JJ and Garcia was close and Garcia would not let something like that stay quiet. She smirks to herself, imagining that phone call.

"They did? How sweet! Did it seem like Lila liked him?" She asks Morgan and Elle chuckles at her excitement.

"I don't think Reid would like us gossiping about him." Derek says and JJ rolls her eyes.

"Oh come on! When was the last time you saw Reid interested in someone? This is huge!"

Derek looks over at her before he turns his attention back to JJ. "I remember him having a crush on you."

JJ blushes slightly. "I'm going to go get something for Hotch and Gideon."

Elle watches as she gets up and walks towards the counter before she looks back at him.

"I saw that look. Jealous?"

He rolls his eyes. "Of Reid? Maybe only because he's shacking up with some beautiful blonde."

She bites her tongue as he gets up going to refill his drink.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle smirks as she watches the man bounce on the balls of his feet as he recalls the night's events. He and Lila had spend the whole night together, talking or so he said. She was sure they had done more, but for some reason he was keeping it quiet. She didn't know why, she already knew he had slept with the woman once, but Spencer didn't make sense all the time so she wasn't going to push it. He was happy and that's all the matters. He was so adorable. She reaches out to tug him close by his belt loops. He looks down at her with that half smile.

"Do you think I should call her?"

She shrugs, tugging on his shirt, untucking it. He always looks so professional. It was strange. "Of course."

"You think she'd want to hear from me?"

"She wouldn't have told you to, if she didn't want you to, Spencer." She undoes the bottom buttons of his shirt. She should be happy about his new crush/thing with Lila but right now she just wanted to push the thoughts of Derek and his ability to be an complete asshole out of her head.

"But if something were to happen with her, then this…." He grabs her hands.

"would be over. Of course." She looks up at him. "I'm not going to stand in the way of you having a relationship, Spencer." And she means it. They're friends first.

"We'd still as close right?" He asks, frowning.

She chuckles, standing up, taking her hands back. "Reid, we aren't close because we fuck."

He frowns. "I think that makes us pretty close." His arms wrap around her waist, pulling her closer. She ruffles his hair with a smile, pushing away all her negative thoughts to focus on the man at hand.

"Right, but we're friends too. We were friends first." She tells him.

"Were we? I'm pretty sure you seduced me before you really knew me."

She chuckles, hands tugging at his hair. "Well fine. We fucked, then I corrupted you. And now we're best friends." Her hands move to his belt loops, tugging his hips closer to hers.

"So you wanna have some fun or talk about our friendship some more?"

He chuckles before bowing his head to press his lips against her neck.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

She finds herself at Derek's. A text in the middle of the night. It kind of made her feel dirty and yet, here she was. He opens the door and moves back to the couch, lounging leisurely, not giving her a spot to sit without touching him.

"You smell like Reid." Derek mumbles when she sits on the small area near his stomach. She's still mad at him.

"I do not." She says with a laugh, looking at him. "Plus, you smell like whore."

"Her name was Rebecca." He murmurs, before he wraps an arm around her pulling her to his chest. He's too strong to fight with and lays her head against his chest.

Her hand moves under his shirt as she gets more comfortable. Might as well. "I think Reid really likes this girl. Lila." She says, not wanting to talk about his other women.

"He asked me if 'this feeling' would ever go away."

"Did you tell him to call her?"

"No."

Elle raises her head. "Why not?"

"She was a victim of a case, Elle. An one night stand? Okay, but come on…." He looks at her, like she should know what he's thinking. She doesn't. If Reid really liked her, and he did, then why shouldn't he give it a try. He wasn't jaded like them, he had feelings and wasn't afraid to admit them. Morgan's inability to see that angered her.

She glares. "He isn't like you, Derek. He has feelings." She says, moving off the couch.

"What's that supposed to mean?" He sits up, looking at her.

"Nothing. I should be going." After seeing Reid so excited, even after Derek had mostly likely told him that it was nothing, she couldn't deal with the man's lack of the same emotion.

He grabs her wrist, tugging her back. "No, what did you mean?"

She tugs her hand back. "I said it's nothing, Derek."

"I have feelings." He says as she starts to walk away.

She pauses, snorts. "Really? You've spent your whole life avoiding feeling anything, Derek. You fuck strangers because you don't want to deal with your past. You don't let anyone truly in."

"I let Garcia in."

"Oh, really? Does she know that you were molested?"

His jaw clenches as he glares.

"Exactly. The one person that you admit to caring about, you won't even let her see the real you. You wouldn't even tell your mother, for god's sake!"

He stands. "Where the hell is this coming from, Elle? You're acting crazy because I told Spencer it was best not to call some girl he kissed in a pool?"

"At least he has the balls to admit that he likes someone."

She slams the door as she leaves. She gets into her car before she realizes how insane she had just acted. She had let her own emotions for Derek get in the way of it. She should have put distance in between them. Then they never would have continued to show up randomly at each others house for the next month. They never would have continued to get closer and she wouldn't be acting crazy because of something that didn't even relate to them. She shakes away the thoughts and turns on the car, driving home.


	18. Machismo Pt 1

Elle doesn't visit Derek's house for weeks. She's pissed at him and mostly herself. She shouldn't have let herself get so emotional that she yelled at him for not having feelings and then walking out. It was dumb. She was acting dumb and it was because she was losing control over her emotions. She was a federal agent, she didn't need to be acting like some little girl. She walks into the BAU, earlier than normal, and shakes her head when she sees Spencer at his desk, on the phone. No one else from the team is here yet, so she makes her way up behind him.

"Talking to a pretty girl?" She teases, close to his ear and laughs when he nearly jumps out of his chair.

"No, I'm okay…..team mate came up behind me. Yeah. Alright. Bye, Lila." He hangs up, looking up at Elle with a slight glare.

"Lila…Archer?"

He picks at his files. "…Maybe."

She grins, sitting on the edge of his desk. "When did that happen?"

"She called me a couple days ago, asking why I hadn't called her."

She laughs. "I like this girl."

He smiles. "I do, too. We talked for hours and then, she asked if she could call me this morning. She had an early call time."

"Yeah. It's like 4 there, right?"

"4:46 am."

She groans. "I can not imagine getting up that early for work."

"I get up that early every morning."

"Yeah, but you're a freak." She smiles, ruffling his hair to show him she's teasing, although by now, she's sure he knows it.

"Averagely, a person needs 8 hours of sleep, but it's only an average. Some people can-"

"I get it. You're not a freak."

She slides off the desk. "Although, who says I was talking about your sleeping patterns." She winks and moves to her own desk.

Spencer blushes a little. "I have no idea what you're talking about." He says, turning back to his work.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle looks at the man as she smokes.

"6 minutes." He murmurs.

"Spencer, shut up." She says, taking another drag. She looks over at him. "I know you care about me, but I grew up in a smoker's house. I started smoking when I was 18. If it's going to kill me, then…it's going to kill me."

He sits next to her with a shrug before he takes the cigarette from her, inspecting it. "I don't get the appeal."

"It's gross. I don't smoke now as much as I used to." She watches as he holds it awkwardly. She watches as he brings it to his lips before she snatches it back.

"No, no. There are a lot of things I will let you do, started to smoke is not one of them."

"I just wanted-"

"No, sir. 6 minutes, right? This world needs very minute of Spencer Reid it can get and I'm not going to let you waste some."

He looks at her for a moment before he smiles. "You like me."

She takes another drag before she looks at him. "Of course, I like you, you dork. You're my best friend."

He grins and she laughs, ruffling his hair.

"What's going on with you and Derek?" He asks after a moment of silence. She looks at him and he explains. "You've spent a lot of time here lately."

"I hate profilers." She says. She stubs out the cigarette before she looks out at the city. Fall was upon them and it was starting to show. She turns back to Spencer. "There's nothing going on with me and Derek."

"You're lying."

"Spencer, stop it." She glares, turning attention back to the city. It was ending of September. She couldn't believe she had been here for a year now.

"I'm your best friend. You should be able to talk to me about these things."

She looks back at him. "There's nothing going with me and Derek, because Derek isn't that type of person that "something" happens with."

She pulls out the pack of cigarettes again, pulling another one out. The subject makes her want to smoke again.

"But you want something to happen?" He asks as she lights up again.

She stands up. "Let's talk about something else, alright?"

He looks up at her. "Did you know that that cigarette contains Cyanhydric acid which was used in the gas chambers. It also contains Pyrene, Cadmium, Toluene, Polonium and Arsenic - which is a-"

"Poison, yes I know. Thank you, Doctor."

"You told me to talk about something else."

"I'd rather talk about Derek than hear you give me every ingredient of my Marlboro."

"Okay." He smiles, looking at her. She glares.

"You planned that didn't you? You smart little bastard."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

There's a knock on her door and she grabs the candy, figuring it's another trick or treat-er. She rocks an eyebrow when she sees Spencer - in costume.

She smirks. "Really?

He grins. "Derek's having a Halloween party. You know you want to come."

"Not with you, dressed like…. What are you supposed to be?" She laughs. "Is that a real mustache?"

He pulls away when she goes to touch his face. "Yes. I can grow facial hair, thank you. I'm Rhett Butler from Gone with the Wind. Garcia told me to do it. she'd Scarlett O'Hara."

She laughs. "You're a nerd, Spencer, but…. I want to see Garcia in a proper southern belle dress, so I'll come."

He grins, stepping inside her house with her. She looks over her shoulder.

"I can't believe you grew a mustache….and that it looks kind of good."

"It itches." He scratches under his nose and she laughs.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

"Rhett, my love." Garcia calls out as she moves towards him. Elle's eyes widen at her dress. She really went all out. Elle turns to Reid, who is blushing deep.

"Garcia… I…"

"It's Scarlett." She winks and kisses his cheek. "Whoa, nice 'stache!"

"Really?"

Elle rolls her eyes, moving through the house leaving the lovers alone. She rolls her eyes when she spots Derek and then laughs, when she sees Clooney.

"You didn't!"

"He's Robin." He says, patting his head. "Batman needs his sidekick."

She shakes her head. "You're…. you're worse than Reid."

Derek gives her a grin. "I didn't think you were going to come."

"I had to see Garcia."

He laughs. "Oh yeah. She…went all out."

She laughs at his words. "That she did."

"Want a beer?"

She nods.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

After everyone's had a few drinks and the night is coming to an end, Spencer is the first to stand to leave.

"I have to get going."

Elle, moving back from the kitchen, shakes her head. "Oh, Rhett! Please, don't go! You can't leave me! Please! I'll never forget you." She pleads, pushing against him.

Spencer tenses for a moment, looking back at the group confused before he looks back at her, realizing the quote. His eyes, flash in realization before becomes somber and pulls her close.

"I'm not asking you to forgive me. I'll never understand or forgive myself. And if a bullet gets me, so help me, I'll laugh at myself for being an idiot. There's one thing I do know... and that is that I love you, Scarlett. In spite of you and me and the whole silly world going to pieces around us, I love you. Because we're alike. Bad lots, both of us. Selfish and shrewd. But able to look things in the eyes as we call them by their right names. "

Garcia's the first to get it and shares with the rest of the group. They cheer. Elle struggles against him and Reid pulls her closer.

"Don't hold me like that!"

"Scarlett! Look at me! I've loved you more than I've ever loved any woman and I've waited for you longer than I've ever waited for any woman."

Elle looks at him. He's actually a decent actor (and she's wonder if its just the alcohol she persuaded him to drink). The words and gaze almost make her shiver and her eyes close when he kisses her forehead before she pulls away. "Leave me alone!"

His fingers move to her chin, making her look at him. His voice softens. "Here's a soldier of the South who loves you, Scarlett. Wants to feel your arms around him, wants to carry the memory of your kisses into battle with him. Never mind about loving me, you're a woman sending a soldier to his death with a beautiful memory. Scarlett! Kiss me! Kiss me... Once…"

"Kiss her!" Garcia screams out and JJ cheers.

"Kiss me, Spencer." She murmurs to him and he blushes.

"Kissss her!" Garcia calls out again and he leans to kiss her lips.

"That's not how he kisses her in the movie. C'mon, Spence."

Elle wraps her free arm around him, pulling him back and laying a passionate kiss on his lips before he pulls back, bright red. She laughs and she sips her beer as the crowd cheers. She bows.

"Thank you, Thank you."

Spencer clears his throat. "I'm going to go now."

Elle chuckles. She catches Derek's look (he looks solemn, before she turns back to Spencer to kiss his cheek. "See you at work tomorrow."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

"So you and Reid are in love now?" Morgan asks, joining her on the back porch where she's smoking.

"What?"

"Reid. He's not that good of an actor. Plus, the look you gave him."

She rolls her eyes. "Shut up, Derek. He was a little drunk and we were just having fun."

"It's been a while since you've been over."

"You haven't asked me to." Elle challenged, looking back at him.

"Well I guess I just don't have the 'balls to admit' something like that."

She glares at him. "Derek -"

He shakes his head. "No, What's going on with you? You yell at me and then you ignore me for a month. I thought we agreed that we were …friends." He raises his eyebrows at the final word and she knows what he's talking about.

"I can't do it anymore. I'm not the person that should help you with that."

"And why not? We were getting along great until you started acting strange."

She flicks the butt away before looking at him. "I just don't want to do it anymore, Derek." She pats his shoulder as she walks back into the living room.


	19. Machismo Pt 2

Author's Note: Just a note about a comment Elle makes about Spencer and a 'fetish'. I don't know if I've mentioned it the story (and I don't even know where to look if I did) but Elle's just teasing the boy because he likes when she speaks Spanish. I don't really know if this would actually be a fetish, but hey, there's a lot of things like that out there and I did find the word on google so who knows. And why not? Beautiful people speaking beautiful languages is always nice, I guess.

Also, this chapter might end up a little longer than normal and I blame the Elle and Spencer conversation at the beginning. I usually try to keep a chapter between 1500 - 2000 words and that conversation alone is 1000 words and that's without any Elle/Derek moments so… it's kinda necessary.

* * *

><p>Elle doesn't talk to Derek the rest of the weekend. She's putting distance between them now. It had gotten out of hand and she was going to fix that. Sure, she had been ignoring him for the last month or so, but they had talked now, she had told him that their arrangment was over. There was nothing left to discuss. There was no left over tension or so she hoped. Who was she kidding? Derek had probably gone out that night and gotten a girl to take home and didn't even care that she wasn't in his apartment anymore. But he had asked about it. He had seemed like he did want to continue their relationship or whatever you could call it. She shakes her head. She doesn't need to be thinking about it now, anyways. She had told him it was over and it was over. She needed to sleep. This case was exhausting and she was tired. There's a knock on the connecting door and Elle gets up to answer it. She unlocks it to see Spencer. She smirks, focusing her thoughts on the man in front of her. Spencer was a much better subject to think about. There were no questions on what the two were. They were friends. He was fun. The end.<p>

"What? All the Spanish to much for your little sound fetish?" She teases.

He glares. "It's not a fetish."

"Really? Because I looked it up. Acousticophilia, a philia - which means fetish, right - of sounds including music, songs, verbal abuse, foreign languages, screaming, panting, moa-"

He glares and cuts her off. "You made your point."

"Does Lila speak Spanish? I could teach her." She tugs at him, pushing him against the bed and moving to his hips. "Just the filthy things."

He looks up at her, shifting against her hips. She knows that he's sensitive to touch - a genius thing he told her - and that the brief contact is almost enough to get a reaction. It's why she touches him so much and why he doesn't like to be touched ("because not all the sensations are good" he said.) She smirks, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Like-"

He moves his hand to her lips. "Don't."

She chuckles. "How are you ever going to get through this case, 'Pretty Boy'?"

He leans back at the nick name. "Derek."

"Huh?"

"You're in love with Derek."

She pulls back. "Whoa, chico. Where did that come from?"

"You do. You like him and he likes you and you should just tell him you like him and you could-"

She covers his lips. "Spencer, it's cute and all that you're in this happy phase with Lila and everything seems possible, but that's not how it works."

He pulls away from her hand. "And Why not?"

"Because….Everyone's messed up. You, Derek and definitely me. And… things just don't work like that."

"It can." He says, moving his hands to her hips, pulling her back. "it can! Sternberg says that-"

"Spencer." She cuts him off. "You can't research everything. I have experience in this, so.. I know more than you at this, alright? Relationships don't work. You get what you need and that's all. That's how you make things work. Emotions just make things messy." Case and point? Her and Derek. A simple task had become something so much more because her damn emotions got in the way.

He frowns. "How do you know that if you don't give it a chance? Even if you're right, there are anomalies."

"Okay. Say an anomaly or whatever does happen and you live happily ever after with Lila. Still.. Doesn't that mean that the percentage of me and Derek working would be increasingly lowers?"

He frowns. "Well if you put it that way then yes, because of the lack of distance between us it would make it seem that there couldn't be more than one happy relationship under your theory that relationships don't work, but-"

"but nothing."

"But!" He says, staring at her. "…in a population of 6.5 billion, it is very possible that we could both be happy."

She looks at him. He's so hopeful and happy. How can she take that away from him? It was the same thing that Derek had done - that she had gotten mad at Derek for doing. She sighs and rests her head on his shoulder. "You're too good, Spencer."

His hands run up her back before back down and he tugs her closer. "I want you to be happy."

She raises her head to look at him. "You're not even in a relationship with her yet and you're already pro-relationship. What going to happen when you fall in love?" She smiles, grabbing his face.

He smiles. "I don't know. Theoretically, the chemicals in my brain would make me feel more happy and more-"

"Shut up." She kisses his forehead.

"Are you going to tell him?" He says, not letting the subject drop. Damn memory.

"We'll see."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle rubs her eyes. She's spoken so much Spanish that she was forgetting how to even think in English. She felt like she was nine years old again and her father had just died. Her mother's family was in town and no one was speaking any English. She straightens up when a cup of coffee is set in front of her. She looks up to see Derek with a cup of his own. She doesn't smile.

"You okay?" He asks, sitting down across from her.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You don't look fine."

_"My head is aching and you standing here, looking like you actually give a damn doesn't help._" She says in Spanish, looking at him. His eyes brows raise, clueless of her words.

"Right. That bad, huh?"

She sips the coffee. "I'm just really to solve this case."

"Yeah, me too. Is there anything I could do to help? We could go get something to eat or take a walk or something." He shrugs and she stares at him. She stands, taking the cup.

"No, I have more women to talk to. Thanks for the coffee though."

He nods and she walks back into the interviewing rooms.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle stops when she sees Spencer standing at her door. "What?"

"JJ told me about the coffee."

She crosses her arms over her torso. "The coffee?"

"You and Derek. I thought you were going to tell him that you li-"

She pushes past him to unlock the door before pulling him before he can finish his sentence.

"Spencer. We had this talk."

"And you said you would tell him."

"I said we would see and then I decided that I'm not. The end."

He glares. "But you agreed that-"

"Spencer. I love you, I do. You're adorable and smart and a great guy, but mind your business."

She moves to the bathroom to shower.

"You are my business."

She turns back to him before walking up to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Chico, I'm going to say this one and you're going to listen, okay?"

He nods, looking down at her.

"If you don't get out of my room, you and our unsub are going to be twins. _Yo entiendo_?"

He gulps. "Y-yeah."

She smiles and pats his cheek. "Good night, Spencer."

He nods and moves towards the door.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

She groans when someone knocks on her door again. She opens it, already speaking.

"Spencer, I swear to god, that I'm going to cast-" She pauses, seeing Derek at her door. "What do you want?"

"You going to castrate our genius? What did he do?"

"Sticking his nose into other people's business."

"Noted." He nods. "JJ and I were going to have some fun in our last night in Mexico. Reid already said no, so you wouldn't have to deal with him. I'll buy you a shot of tequila."

JJ groans as she makes her way up to them. "No more alcohol."

Elle laughs, remembering the woman had gotten wasted at their Halloween party. Spencer had told her all about the woman's inferences of the team. In a way it had pissed her off that everyone was seemingly picking up on her feelings for the black man other than Derek, himself, but on the other hand, JJ teasing Spencer was too amusing to be mad at.

"We need someone that speaks the language." JJ says, looking at her. "We tried to make Spence come with his broken Spanish, but he's too busy talking to Lila."

"Don't make her beg." Derek says, giving her the signature smile. She leans against the door. "She's actually very good at it."

"It's the blue eyes. Everyone falls for these baby blues." JJ says before she smiles.

Elle laughs. "Even the women?" She says, remembering something Spencer had told her.

JJ blushes deep. "I… I'll be at the car."

Elle laughs as Derek watches JJ leave, interested. "What was that about?"

"Halloween. It's just a joke."

"Are you coming?" He asks, leaving it alone.

She sighs. "Yeah, I guess."

He smiles. "Good."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

"He's always been slightly clueless." JJ says, leaning over.

Elle turns sharply to the woman. "Excuse me?"

"Derek."

Elle shakes her head. "I don't know what you're talking about."

JJ sips her coke before she nods. "Of course, but if you did know what I was talking about, then you would need to know that he doesn't trust a lot of people and since I've been here, he has gotten better, but he's always going to be the same kind of guy. He's hot as hell, but he's a little bit damaged. And it takes a bulldozer to get through those walls."

"What do you know?"

JJ shrugs. "I don't know anything, but we all have our secrets."

Elle looks at her before she reaches for the beer in front of her. "That we do. So hypothetically, how long does it take to get through?"

JJ laughs. "I've been here since March 2003 - and I'm not sure that he still trusts me."

Elle makes a face.

"But he's never been attracted to me, either."

"Bullshit." Elle says.

JJ laughs. "He hasn't!"

"Who hasn't?" Derek says, sitting down.

"You've never found me attractive."

Derek looks confused before he grins. "Do you know this woman has the record for the quickest draw for a woman in the FBI?"

They look at him, confused.

"I ain't messin' with that!"

Elle laughs. "But you do find her hot? I mean, come on, I find her hot."

JJ snorts. "You've had too much to drink."

Elle grins and sips her beer. "Maybe, but come on, Derek… you really never found her attractive."

"JJ is the same age of my sister, Desiree, Dez is like two…three months younger… and I've always just… seen JJ as a sister because of that, I guess, so…No, not really. I mean, of course, she's beautiful. You're gorgeous."

JJ nudges him and he winks. "But you're attracted to Elle, right?"

Elle sips her drink, raising her eyebrows up as he looks at her. He looks back at JJ who is waiting, anxiously.

"Spencer set you up to this, didn't he?" Elle asks after she sets down her beer. She was going to hurt the genius for spilling her secret. If JJ knew that meant Garcia knew and if Garcia knew, Derek would know soon enough. She was going to kill Spencer.

JJ stares blankly at her. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Derek laughs. "You're vicious, Jayje."

"Answer the question."

Derek turns back to Elle. "Of course, Elle is a very attractive woman."

"I didn't ask if she was hot, I asked if you were attracted to her."

Derek stares at her before looking back at Elle. "Is this why you wanted to hurt Reid?"

She nodded, sipping her beer again. She was way too sober for this.

"I understand why." He mutters, grabbing his own beer.

She finishes the drink before she stands up. "And with that I'm leaving. Spencer and I need to have a little talk."


	20. Charm and Harm

Elle opens the door to see Spencer standing there. She glares, it's the third night he's shown up at her place since they got back.

"I don't want to talk to you."

"But -"

"But nothing, you broke my trust. You told my secret. I have nothing to say."

"She already kind of knew!"

"So that makes it okay? JJ kind of knows about your crush, but that doesn't mean I'm going to go tell her."

He frowns, looking at his shoes. "I was just-"

"Like I said, Reid."

He looks up at his last name. Out of the office, she's been calling him Spencer for months. She moves back inside. "I don't want to talk to you."

"Elle." He tries, but she shuts the door. She needs a drink.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle wakes up with her head pounding. She turns to her side to see Spencer in bed with her. She stares at him, trying to remember what had happened the night before. She checks to see if she's dressed - she is - before she shakes his shoulder. He grunts before turning over, burying his face into the pillow.

"Spencer."

He grunts again and she waits until he opens his eyes. He looks at her. "What?"

"The last thing I remember was being mad at you. Why are you in my bed?"

"You got drunk and Dale called me to pick you up."

"And that ends up with you in my bed how?"

"You were really drunk. I wasn't going to leave you alone."

She looks at him. "I'm still mad at you."

"Well, I'm mad at you too. You regurgitated all the alcohol on my shoes."

She looks at him before she laughs. "Good. You deserve it."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle jumps at Derek slams his helmet on the desk. She groans. "Can you please be quiet?"

"What? Too much to drink?" He asks and she glares at Spencer.

"I didn't say anything!" He squeaks.

She rolls her eyes and moves to the break room. She starts to make herself a cup of coffee.

"You shouldn't be so angry at Reid." She hears Derek say.

She turns to look at him. "Yeah, why not?"

"He's just trying to help."

She pauses, turning back to her coffee. She bites her tongue, unsure of what to say. "Help with what?" She asks, deciding to act clueless.

He grabs a cup himself before he shrugs. She watches as he leaves, even more confused.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

"Can I buy you a drink?" A man asks, next to her.

She looks up to see a man in a pretty good suit and raises her eyebrows. "I already have a drink." She says, raising the beer. She's not in the mood to get hit on. She's in the mood to sit and drink and think. Derek's words were stuck in her head.

"Then another." He sits and she wants to roll her eyes. He's not going to quit. She takes another look at the man. He's successful, she can tell by the watch. He's not used to getting denied. She looks back at her a drink, noticing it's half empty. She was just going to order another one after this anyways and she's not in the mood to deal with him continuing to woo her. Why not get a drink for free and get the man to leave her alone. "Whatever, sure."

He grins and sits next to her. "Let's get you something better than a beer, though."

She watches as he orders her a drink. He's cocky and it annoys her. She'd drink her drink and leave. Maybe she'd go to Derek's and finally try and figure what was going on between them.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle sees when Derek enters the bar and nods at the bartender who points to her and the man. She grins to herself before pushing closer to the suit, who was telling her some boring story. She reaches out to tug at his tie and kisses his neck.

"Elle." Derek says behind her and she rolls her eyes.

"Hey. Step off." He says to the suit, which gets the man to sit up.

"What, are you the boyfriend?" Suit asks and Elle giggles, looking at Derek.

"No. He's not the boyfriend. Right, Derek?"

Derek raises his eyebrows at her.

"Then… You step off." Suit says and Elle giggles again. Oh, god, she was drunk. Sober Elle did not giggle. Sober Elle did not flirt with other men to gain the attention of another. God, drunk Elle was a whore. She giggles to herself again.

Derek turns his surprised look to Suit, but it doesn't last long until it changes to annoyed. She leans into the Suit - what was his name? She couldn't remember - looking at Derek.

"Yeah, Derek."

Derek tenses as Suit leans over and kisses her. She kisses back before turning her head to look at the black man. She sees his hands clench at his side.

"Really, man. She's drunk. She needs to go home." Derek says and she's surprised on how well he's keeping his composure. Maybe he didn't really feel anything.

"I'll take her home. Don't worry about that."

"Yeah, Derek. He'll take me home."

Derek ignores her, staring at the Suit. "Do you know what the legal definition of rape is?"  
>Sex with a victim that is incapable of giving consent because of the effect of any alcoholic liquor, narcotic, drug, or any other substance, which condition was known by the offender or was reasonably apparent to the offender. Now, Dale here, I bet would be willing to testify in a court that he saw Elle, an FBI agent, here leave with you and if Elle wakes up and admits to having sex with you, I can and will arrest you. Do you understand?"<p>

Elle leans back in the booth as she stares at him. Suit's eyes widen. "FBI?" He backs up.

"Yes. FBI. Now I'm going to take her home. Are we going to have a problem?"

"N-No."

Elle smirks at Derek as she slides out of the booth. Derek follows her as she makes her way out of the bar. She makes sure to glare at Dale the bartender before she leaves.

"You sounded like Reid, there." She says, as she leans against his car.

"Shut up. What was that about? Dale said this was the second time this week."

"Why are you here?" She asks, ignoring his question.

"He called me and told me you were drunk. He didn't want you to get hurt."

"So you drive the 30 minutes here and come rescue me?" She leans against her car. There's no way she's getting on his bike.

Derek shrugs. "Maybe I didn't want you to get hurt either."

She looks up at him. "What's that supposed to mean?" She asks before she can stop herself. She doesn't get this man. He keeps throwing hints around, but won't actually admit to anything. She needed him to be blunt.

"It means that I… care about you." He says and she frowns.

"You care about me?"

"Of course, you're my team mate." He says.

She stares at him. "Right. Team mate."

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

Elle stares at Derek in the conference room after he mentions her having a boyfriend. She knows he was teasing her for the night before. She knows he's not going to let it go either. She also knows that JJ's amused look is because the woman now knows about her crush. She wants to smack all of them - other than Reid who sort of came to her defense. She wants to stay mad at the man, but it's hard. He's hard to stay angry with his stupid facts, his lack of judgment and his big heart. If she were being rational, she would know the man had just been trying to help her face her feelings. He was happy with his budding relationship and just wanted her to feel the same, but he didn't know about Morgan's issues. He didn't know about hers. She had figured it all out the night before. She and Derek, no matter the attraction or feelings she had for the man, would never work, end of story. They were both too damaged to be together. It would be incredibly too messy.


	21. Secret and Lies

Elle snuggles into the body next to her before she realizes what she's doing. The smell is definitely Derek's and she groans.

"Please do not tell me I got drunk again."

His chest rumbles with a laugh.

"You fell asleep in the car. I didn't want to wake you."

She looks up at him. "How'd I get inside?" She runs a hand through her hair. "What time is it?"

"Almost two and I carried you. You're light."

She stares at him. "You carried me? I could have walked, Derek."

He laughs again. "You looked cute, I couldn't wake you."

She tries to stay annoyed, but he called her cute. She gives him a half smile. "I'm not cute! I'm tough. I can still kick your ass and I'll show you if you call me 'cute' again." She jabs him in the side, playfully.

"I'm sure of it." He says, megawatt smile

A silence overcomes them and she wonders if she should move. She's comfortable though. She rests her head by on his chest and his arm wraps around her waist, pulling her closer. That answers that question. It's nice being so close to him. It had been months since they had been this close. She missed it. God, she couldn't believe that. Her hand moves against his chest. She needed to just tell him and let it out. They could move forward or at least figure out what to do. A clear answer would be better than liking him and analyzing everything he said in attempt to find out if he felt the same way.

"Derek, I-"

The phone rings breaking off her words and she wants to growl. He picks it up, looking at her, curiously. "Morgan."

Elle buries into his chest, annoyed. She had gotten the nerve to admit her feelings and the damn phone had rang.

"Right now? It's two am." He pauses. "Yeah. No, She's here. Her phone must have died."

She looks up at him wide-eyed. "Derek!"

He ignores her and continues his conversation. "We'll be there." He hangs up to look at her.

"That was Gideon. We have a case."

"You told Gideon I was here! What the hell, man!" All the emotional stuff was thrown out the window, right now. He had told her boss that she was here with him and now Gideon was probably thinking she was too busy trying to get in Morgan's pants to concentrate on the job!

He smirks. "What? We just spent the last day traveling around the south. You were too exhausted to drive home."

She glares and gets up out of the bed and sees her go-bag at the foot of the bed. She glares at him again as she tugs off the dirty shirt before pulling out the new one from her bag.

"Do you know that out of the 29 profilers that are a part of the BAU right now, that only two are female." She says, tugging on the other shirt before she looks back at him. She can not believe he had done that.

"Two! And now, my boss thinks I'm sleeping with you."

"Technically, Hotch became the Unit Chief after Gideon came back to the team."

She glares again as she moves back to the bathroom.

"And you are sleeping with me!" He calls out, making her come back into the bedroom. The grin on his face is enough to make her want to punch him. He's enjoying this way too much.

"I am not sleeping with you! We never went all the way. Oral sex and hand jobs don't count."

"But you want to." He says and she pauses. Was he just talking about sex? Or was he talking about everything. Were they really about to have this conversation?

"You want to have this conversation now?" She asks.

He shrugs, getting out of the bed, tugging off his own shirt. Her eyes move over his muscles, noting the low slung pants. This is not the time to checking him out, she scolds herself. He grins when she licks her lips. Her eyes widen at the realization.

"You're an ass, Derek."

"An ass that you want." He says, and she figures out he's just talking about sex. Sex was easier to talk about. It was animalistic, it was…necessary to survive - in the sense of passing your genetics down and what not. But they weren't talking about genes and children and evolution nonsense. They were talking about sex and he was being cocky. He looks back over at her, still shirtless. Cocky, but right.

She huffs. "Alright, fine. Yes. I'd love to take you for a ride. But right now, we have to get to work."

He chuckles again as she moves back into the bathroom. He better have his shirt back on when she got out.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

It's kind of frightening to know that one of their bosses work for the CIA and in another way, pretty cool. The case is easy, find the mole and save the family. They each get their own member and of course, Derek gets the hot Latina. She tries to not let it get to her, watching him grin as they talk. She overhears him mention Clooney and gets jealous, which makes her feel even more stupid. She hated that dog and now she was getting jealous that he was talking about him to another woman? She was losing her edge. She had been serious when she was talking to Derek. Out of all the BAU agents, only two were women. She was a smart, qualified woman to do this job and what was happening? She was letting a man get in the way. A very handsome, chiseled man who other than having a great body, was actually a very great guy. She blamed Max Ryan for it all, making her think about everything. It was that case that had started everything. It was that case that made her share private information with Derek and made her get closer to the man, it was the thing that started their whole relationship, which only added to the soft feelings that lead her to this mess. She needed to get her edge back. She needed to be strong and smart and show the bosses that she could handle this job.

**Deal Breaker || Breaking the Cycle**

"I can't believe Gideon works with the CIA." Derek says, over breakfast after the case. The three had decided to go to a fast food restaurant before heading back to their homes. Hotch had given them orders not to show up to work until tomorrow.

"I can." Spencer says and she rolls her eyes.

"Yeah, and I'm sure after Gideon leaves, you'll be the one that takes his spot."

Spencer frowns. "Can you imagine? I wonder if Gideon had to write a suicide note too."

Derek laughs. "He's not actually in the CIA, Reid."

"Yeah, but he's privy to information that only the CIA is aware of. If someone would become aware-" He frowns. "Maybe we shouldn't be talking about this."

Elle laughs at him as he looks around. She should still be mad at him, but it's too difficult. She'll just get revenge on him eventually. She ruffles his hair. "Don't be so paranoid, Spencer."

She sees him tense and pull away from her hand. She frowns. They hadn't really talked since she kicked him out of her bed that night she gotten drunk. Was he mad at her? She ignores it for the moment, but makes a note to talk about it to him later.

"So you and Gina Sanchez seemed friendly." He says, looking at Derek. She glares at him, but he ignores it.

Derek shrugs, chewing on his breakfast sandwich. "She's okay. It's a good thing Gideon was right about her." Had Gina followed her orders, Derek wouldn't be eating with them right now. Elle shakes away the thought.

Derek wipes his hands off on his pants, changing the subject. "I actually wanted to talk to you guys about something. I already asked Garcia and she said no, but what do you guys think about Jamaica?"

She looks at Spencer, who frowns. "Jamaica is an island nation of the -"

"I'm not asking for facts, Reid. I'm asking you if you want to go." He laughs.

"Go to Jamaica?" Elle asks.

He nods, sipping his drink. "My friend owns a resort and seeing how we have vacation time coming up, I thought we could all go have some fun in the sun. I'm sick of the snow."

"Did you know that with 2.8 million people, that Jamaica is the third most popular English speaking counter in America?" Spencer asks. "And Although, it has one of the highest murder rates in the world, it receives half of it's income from tourism."

Derek just ignores him. "Come on, a little sun… a lot of hotties. Good old fashioned vacation."

Spencer frowns. "I'm going to…be busy."

"He means he's going to California to see Lila." She says around a bite of pancakes.

Spencer blushes and Derek chuckles. "What about you, Elle? Beautiful beaches, some reggae music….lots of fun."

Elle looks at him. "Just me and you, huh?"

He grins. "Me and you."

Elle looks at Spencer, who is looking at her, hopeful. She smirks. "Alright. Let's go to Jamaica."


End file.
